


Ask Elizabeth

by aswellingstorm



Category: Riverdale (TV 2017)
Genre: AU, Childhood Friends, Friends to Lovers, Friendship, Multi, Not Canon Compliant, Romantic Friendship, so like
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-06-07
Updated: 2018-08-26
Packaged: 2019-05-19 05:27:51
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 7
Words: 33,506
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/14867496
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/aswellingstorm/pseuds/aswellingstorm
Summary: In the months to come Betty might look back on that moment and recognize it for what it was: opening Pandora’s box. Every word, piece of advice, emotion and action that followed, could all be attributed to pressing the send button on that message. Everything was about to change, for better or for worse.orBetty Cooper runs an advice column for the Blue and Gold, called Ask Elizabeth. One day she gets a message from "Anonymous-S", which turns into much more than either parties could've anticipated. Off the internet, she's left to wonder what went wrong in her friendship with Jughead Jones.





	1. lost

It was a little after 11am on a rainy Friday when Betty received the first  of what would become many messages. She was working in the office of the _Blue and Gold_ , the school newspaper she ran primarily by herself. The few contributing writers were only on board because their English teachers had told them that they either could either write for the paper for extra credit or fail their college-prep level classes entirely. This didn’t leave Betty with a particularly _talented_ staff of writers (leaving most of her time dedicated to editing) or a riveting weekly paper.

There were only two parts of the paper that the student body was interested in: the Gossip column (pioneered by Ginger and Tina) and the advice column- _Ask Elizabeth_. When Betty tried the idea out a few weeks ago and directed students in need of help to anonymously drop her an ask at the Blue and Gold tumblr page, she didn’t expect much response, if any. However, she was surprised to find a influx of messages in the newspapers ask box.

She chalked it up to the merging of Riverdale and Southside High, a lot of students were discontent or confused. Some of the messages she received were inappropriate-ranging from asking for _inappropriate_ photos to calls for gang violence. But every week there were about 2-3 serious messages she had received asking for advice about friendships, relationships, family issues or academics. Betty felt a wave of satisfaction after publishing each column, feeling that she _might_ have actually helped someone, even if it was in a small way. She even received a follow-up ask every now and then, offering gratitude for the advice she had provided.

Part of the popularity of the column was due to students wondering who had asked for the advice. Turns out, if one person was asking Betty for relationship advice, the whole school would be _dying_ to know what couple was on the brink of extinction. Or which of their peers was in danger of failing honors chemistry or who’s mother was hooked on Vicodin. But Betty wasn’t particularly fond of her readers trying figure out the identity of those asking for help, even if she could admit that she was a bit inquisitive herself. However she was able to push such idle curiosity aside in favor of her ultimate goal: protecting the privacy of her readers. Which is why, on that particular Friday, when she received an unusual request in the ask-box, she was more than happy to oblige.

_Dear Elizabeth,_

_What are the odds I can get some advice without being published?_

_-Anonymous-S_

Her brows wrinkled in confusion, and she clicked on the page associated with the ask only to find it empty. _Huh_. Generic icon, no posts, no information set up. It was as if, whoever this was, created the account for the sole purpose of a back and forth communication-so that everything could be kept private. No one had asked to remain anonymous yet-previously it had been impossible. If students left her an anonymous ask, it’d be published whether she responded to it on the tumblr page or in the weeks newspaper. But this? This was something _new_ , and Betty Cooper found herself intrigued.

She rolled her shoulders, and started typing before her brain could convince her to do otherwise.

_Dear S,_

_This is a bit…unconventional. But the_ Ask Elizabeth _column won’t deny anyone advice, so you can consider everything between us confidential._

She hesitated for a moment before her moral compass kicked in,

_As long as it’s nothing illegal. Or puts you or anyone else in danger._

_-Elizabeth_

She sent the message quickly, the outdated bell chiming loudly throughout the halls as she did so. Dully, in the back of her mind she had realized it was the late-warning bell, leaving her with only a minute to get to her next class. She grabbed her books, hurriedly shoving them into her satchel and darting out the door-barely remembering to close it in her haste.

This prompted her to run into what felt like a wall of solid leather, causing her to stumble backwards and nearly drop her bag. She looked up to see two unimpressed serpents staring at her-with Jughead right next to them. Betty blinked in surprise at them, still unsettled by Jughead’s recent alignment with the gang.

They hadn’t been close for quite some time. Betty never really understood why or how their friendship fell apart, but seeing him dressed in the signature Serpent jacket was incredibly jarring, even if she could still see the peaks of his flannel from underneath.  He was staring at her with a strange look on his face-was it surprise, maybe? Betty felt as though their eyes were locked, and she stuck staring at him in a magnetic connection. It was a fleeting moment before she snapped herself out of it, but looking at him she could recall waves of confusion and hurt as he ended their friendship earlier this year. She muttered an apology before darting away.

“Watch where you’re going next time,  _muckraker_ ,” one of the serpents, Toni, sneered. Betty glanced over her shoulder to fix the pink-haired Southsider a glare but was surprised to see Jughead staring back at her with the same look on his face.

Toni had her arms crossed while the other Serpent, Fangs if Betty was correct in assuming, rolled his eyes. 

Although it was an odd encounter, Betty quickly brushed it off. Seeing Jughead look so… _different_ made her feel uncomfortable, but there wasn’t much she could do. He cut off all ties with her and Archie before the beginning of the year-before his dad went to prison and before he was even _sent_ to the Southside. He’d made it clear he didn’t want anything to do with her and there wasn’t much she could do to change that.

_But still…_

She walked into her history class and was happy to find that her best friend  Veronica had saved her a seat. She sat down as the bell rang and pulled out her phone, excitement building as she read her most recent notification: _S sent you a message on tumblr._

_No one is any sort of danger or illegal activity-scouts honor. Why should I believe you won’t publish anything I ask you?_

_-S_  

_Fair question_. Betty straightened up in her seat, looking around her cautiously to make sure no one was looking at her. Veronica was steadily engaged in something on her phone and the rest of her classmates seemed occupied.

_I humbly swear on both my personal integrity and the integrity of advice columns everywhere, including the honorable_ Dear Abby _that started it all._

_-Elizabeth._

“More lost souls begging for your advice?” Veronica asked over her shoulder with a smirk that was more friendly than it was menacing. 

Betty looked up at her with wide eyes, “Um-yep, yeah.”  She didn’t know why she felt so nervous all of the sudden, guilty as if she was doing something wrong. 

Veronica looked at her curiously, “You know I think it’s great-giving the school something else to focus on other than all of this-this civil war crap between the North and the Southside.” 

Betty knew her best friend had been subject to a fair amount of criticism, due in part to her dad being the reason for the merge of the schools. Betty choose not to dig too deeply into the how or the why behind the purchase-instead deciding to comfort her best friend. 

Their friendship had started off a bit rocky, but Betty found herself closer to Veronica in a shorter period of time than she had felt to Archie in their entire lives. When the whole town was gossiping about Betty’s sister being pregnant and sharing custody with Jason Blossom, Veronica stood by her side proudly. Veronica was there for her when her parents were too preoccupied with the baby or blaming each other for Polly’s mistakes. 

“People will calm down eventually, V,” Betty reassured with a soft smile before turning her head to the front of the room as their teacher started writing on the board. 

Veronica didn’t seem as assured, eyes falling to the floor and landing on the trail of sunlight peeking out through the clouds and filtering in through the window. 

Betty didn’t receive another message until her lunch period which she was once again spending in the office of _The Blue and Gold_. Veronica frowned when they parted ways after class, complaining about how Betty spent too much time there-but she had no choice, not with another paper coming out on Monday morning. 

The ask in this week’s paper was about dealing with the stress of midterms, a response Betty wrote with ease. All she had to do now was edit everyone else’s articles. She wondered if she’d scared S off-if maybe they didn’t trust her to keep it confidential when she saw a little red bubble appear on her dashboard. 

It could’ve been anyone, but something in her gut told her it was the response she’d been waiting for.

_If we’re swearing on the very soul of_ Dear Abby _I guess I’ll have to trust you. As long as we’re off the record here, I’m not sure what I’m so fucking worried about anyway. It’s not like I’ve got anything to lose anymore._

_-S_  

This was it, with the next response there was no backing out now. 

_I’m sure that’s not true. Why do you think that?_

_-Elizabeth_

In the months to come Betty might look back on that moment and recognize it for what it was: opening Pandora’s box. Every word, piece of advice, emotion and action that followed, could all be attributed to pressing the send button on that message. Everything was about to change, for better or for worse.


	2. outsider

_I guess I just haven’t  felt like myself lately. The whole year, actually. It’s like overnight everything just…changed and now I’m on the outside looking in._

_-S_

Betty read the message as she walked through the front door of her house. She nearly ran into Jason Blossom-who was currently juggling two babies that were screaming as if the world was about to implode. 

“Oh hey Betty,” Jason said in an exhausted but calm manner, “Welcome home.” 

 _Home_. Betty scoffed internally. _Home is where you’re greeted by your sisters baby daddy now, I guess._

Polly’s tired and shrill voice echoed throughout the hall, “ _Betty_! Did you wake them up? I _just_ put them down two seconds ago-and then you have to walk in and slam everything!” 

Betty winced, knowing two things for certain: one, she had not slammed anything and two, she could hear the babies wailing before she even opened the door. 

She opened her mouth to argue, when Jason shook his head vigorusly in a silent plea for Betty not to fight back. 

Choosing the path of least resistance, Betty ignored her sister and the twinge of irritation that came from a near stranger making demands of her in her own house. Perhaps the phrase “near stranger” was a bit harsh. She’d known Jason since they were babies themselves but… they were certainly never friends and would’ve likely never interacted if it weren’t for Polly.

She trudged up the stairs to her room, making sure to take extra care when shutting it. She threw herself down on her bed, bones aching in a way that only mirrored mental exhaustion. 

_Everything changing overnight is something I’m pretty familiar with. Seems like nothing is the same in Riverdale anymore, not with the recent merger with Southside High. Is that what’s bothering you?_

_-Elizabeth_  

In the back of her mind, Betty knew there were countless things she needed to be doing. She should go back downstairs and make sure Polly had emptied the dishwasher like she was supposed to, she should make sure she left her house keys on the counter, she should be checking over the latest edition of the newspaper one more time or finishing her rough draft of her history paper but… 

“Elizabeth!” her mom appeared in the doorway what felt like mere seconds later. Betty jolted upright at the intrusion, feeling groggy. She glanced down at her her phone, realizing in shock that it was already 7pm. _Holy crap_ , she had just slept for nearly two hours. “Are you just going to sleep the whole day away?” 

“Mom, what are you talking about?” Betty couldn’t help the irritation seeping into her voice, “I’ve been in school all day.”

“Do you feel tired often? Fatigued? Have you not been taking your adderal? Do you need a higher dosage to keep your energy up?” Alice asked persistently.

“No mom,” Betty shook her head, “I’m fine, I promise…it was just a long day.” 

Rather than asking what about her day was so taxing, Alice fixed her daughter with an unimpressed look. “A long day? That’s called life, sweetie. Also theres a box of pizza on the counter downstairs, better grab a slice before Jason gets his hands on it.” 

“I’ll be down in a minute,” Betty rolled her eyes and grabbed her phone. 

 _I heard about your sister and Jason and the twins. I hope everything’s going alright with them. And that was a pretty clever way of trying to get me to help you figure out who I am. Almost had me for a minute there. But no, this has been going on for much longer than Riverdales very own Civil War._

_-S_

She narrowed her eyes in response, a bit amused at how cautious S was. She really wasn’t too interested in figuring out who _S_ was, truth be told. If they wanted to be anonymous, she was respectful of their reasonings. She figured it must be someone she was close with if they knew about Polly, but alas _everyone_ in Riverdale knew about Polly it seemed. Nonetheless, she decided to pick her words a bit more carefully.

 _Not trying to figure out who you are, I just need to know_ something _about you so I can actually help you._   _And as for Polly…things are going just about as well as anyone would expect them to._

_-Elizabeth_

Betty could still hear the twins crying downstairs, the sound of it mingled unpleasantly with her mother angrily sorting and putting away the laundry next door-slamming the drawers with an unnecessary amount of force. She decided that the last place she wanted to be right now was _home_ , much less for the entire weekend. She debated texting Veronica and asking if they could have an impromptu movie night, but turned her gaze to her window-the one that looked right across to Archie’s room. 

As if on cue by some otherworldly force that sought to make her lose her appetite, Betty witnessed Veronica saunter into Archie’s room and take off her jacket to reveal-

 _Alright, that’s it_ -Betty hastily shut her curtains and willed _that_ image to leave her brain. 

 _Love you both but Archie-you have curtains. Use them._ She typed and sent the text hastily, worried it may have made her sound a bit… _bitchy_. While she was happy her two best friends were dating, she needed there to be boundaries.

She shook her head, deleting the conversation as the apologetic texts rolled in. As she walked down the stairs she sent Kevin a text to see if he was free-but received a irritating response. 

 _if ur asking me that must mean Veronica is busy & i’d like the record to reflect that i’m no one’s second choice! but also i totally would if i wasn’t helping my dad w paper work tn, sorry_

With a roll of her eyes, she shoved her phone into her back pocket and picked up a slice of pizza. Maybe it was for the best that her friends were busy tonight, she decided that she could lock herself in her room and finish up her editing. Maybe if she was lucky she could get a head start on her homework that was due in two weeks, similar to how she was able to finish all of her homework for the incoming week last Friday… 

 _I’d imagine it’s a whole lot like Teen Mom, minus the fame and fortune._

_Doesn’t matter if I’m from Northside or Southside, not really. I felt like this long before Hiram Lodge strolled out of whatever high-end prison they send the 1% to._

_-S_

Betty smiled at the message. While she was firm in supporting Veronica, she had to admit there was something about Hiram Lodge that rubbed her the wrong way. He had promised Veronica he wanted to be a better father after prison, but since he’s returned he’s only seemed concerned with buying up whatever real estate he could get his hands on. Northside, Southside, it didn’t matter in Betty’s opinion-Hiram was taking it all. He could frame an enormous portrait of Veronica in his study, but it wouldn’t compensate for how little Veronica’s true wellbeing occupied his thoughts. 

 _Fair point._ She wrote back. She’d felt similarly at the beginning of the school year. Lost. Wandering around aimlessly. Going through the motions of life, but not really feeling like herself. That’s why she had started the _Blue and Gold_ back up, writing was always her favorite pass time. It anchored her and allowed her feel like herself again. _Do you have any hobbies? Anything you like to do that maybe you haven’t done a whole lot of recently? Like fishing? Or yoga? Maybe reading an old book or doing something familiar might  make you feel more like yourself._

_-Elizabeth_

- 

Monday morning was a very welcome occurrence for Betty. She was eager to get out of the house and school was the perfect eight hour pill. She hadn’t heard from _S_ all weekend and didn’t know whether that was a good or bad sign. She sent them another message this morning: 

_Hey, I haven’t heard from you in a few days, hope that means my advice is working. If you ever need anything else, you know where I’ll be._

_-Elizabeth_

 

But at least the latest edition of the _Blue and Gold_ was a hit. It gave Betty a deep feeling of satisfaction to walk down the hallway and see her peers flocking over the paper, even if most of the attention was focused more on the entertainment sections. 

“Betty!” Veronica ran up to her and put a hand on her arm. 

“Hey V,” she responded with an easy smile as she rummaged through her locker. “Fun weekend?” 

Veronica raised her eyebrow, “You could say that. How was yours? Wanna walk with me to lunch?” 

Betty shook her head at the offer, raising her brown paper bagged lunch, “Staff meeting for the Blue and Gold.  See you in history?” 

An unimpressed frown fell across Veronica’s features, “We never hang out anymore.” 

“We have five classes together,” Betty deadpanned, “Besides I tried to hang out with you this weekend-” 

“But I had a prior commitment, yes I know,” Veronica rolled her eyes, “You know, it’s not like you’re super accessible either. You’re always working on the paper or schoolwork, I’m surprised you're not so far ahead they haven’t graduated you already.”

Betty shut her locker roughly, “What’s so wrong with being ahead, Veronica?” 

Her best friend back pedaled quickly, “Nothing, B. I’m just saying…I miss my bestie. I don’t even know whats going on with you anymore.” 

Betty felt her stomach clench with guilt. She hadn’t felt like she was isolating herself or pushing Veronica away but…maybe she was. She offered Veronia a small smile, “Cheryl’s gonna have us start preseason training before she holds tryouts for the incoming freshmen. Maybe we could run some laps after school to get back into the swing of things?” 

“Sounds great!” Veronica’s face lit up excitedly, “See you then!” 

Before Betty could respond, Veronica had already disappeared into the sea of students.

\-- 

“Sorry I’m late everyone,” Betty said as breezed into the room, putting her belongings on the table in front of the room.

No one seemed to notice her tardiness, or care for that matter, as they hadn’t looked at her since she entered. Reggie was checking out all of the new snapchat filters of the day, Ginger and Tina were texting each other despite sitting only two feet apart, Trev was listening to music on his headphones, Midge and Moose were whisper-arguing about something and Dilton looked like he’d been mentally checked out since first period. 

Betty cleared her throat and some of them mustered enough decency to at least look up at her. She was about to congratulate all of them on the success of this weeks issue when Tina raised her hand. 

“Yes Tina?” Betty asked, arms laid across her body. 

“So like, no offense because you’re like our super awesome editor and all, but can you just um give us our topics for the week already?” Tina boldly asked, “It’s just that the online Lily Pulitzer sale starts in like, two minutes-”

“You know what? Fine,” Betty cut her off with a withdrawn sigh. She handed out the papers containing everyones topics and watched them all beeline for the door. “Just go.” 

Frustrated, she ran her hands over her ponytail, smoothing down the flyaways. She turned her back to the door and leaned against the table, staring at the empty whiteboard in front of her.

Her crew wasn’t a dream team by any means, not in the slightest. But she just wanted someone to _listen_ to her and actually care about what she had to say. Even if they were only there by the force of whatever teacher assigned them to the paper. Absently, she wondered if _S_ had finally responded, but something in her heart told her checking would be futile. 

“Don’t tell me I already missed my first staff meeting,” Betty jumped at the sound of a deep voice from the doorway, shoving her phone into her pocket before quickly turning around. 

Her surprise only deepened when she saw _who_ was standing there: Jughead Jones.

Flashes of their awkward encounter on Friday flashed in her mind. “Jughead…what a surprise. what are you doing here?” 

A genuine smile fell upon her face-she _was_ happy to see him. If not a bit confused. He had steadily dodged all of her efforts to talk to him, before and after he returned to Riverdale High. 

He seemed a bit weary and his defensiveness was raised by her question. Almost as though he had interpreted it as her not wanting him to be there. 

He handed her a folded note, “I’m your latest and greatest writer it seems.” 

Her eyes glanced over the letter-it was from Mrs. Higginbotham, one of the English teachers that was hired to accommodate the recent influx of students. Betty had never received a letter from a teacher informing her of their extra credit opportunity. They had all more or less showed up one day and begrudgingly explained that they would either write for the paper or fail- 

“Wait!” She exclaimed, “You’re failing English? Jughead, how is that possible? You’re like, one of the greatest writers I know!” 

His gaze hardened and she realized she may have come off a bit accusatory. “Got better things to do than write papers interpreting Shakespeares ending to _The Taming of the Shrew_.” 

She sighed, taking the paper and folding it neatly, the way she had received it. “Right. _Serpent_ things, I imagine?” 

“The serpents are-they’re the closest thing I’ve got to family okay?” He retorted, “So if you want to act like every other stuck up Northsider and look down on them, I’m out.” 

 _Every other stuck up Northsider?_ She tsked, “I’ve written _countless_ articles defending the Serpents-even before the Southside High merger, not like anyone pays attention to them-but I wrote them! I started the _Ask Elizabeth_ column to help mediate issues from _both_ student bodies-so no, Jughead. I’m not ‘ _like every other Northsider’_ okay?” He paled a bit at her rant and his eyes were looking everywhere but at hers. It seemed to be unlike him, but it wasn’t like she could really claim to know him anymore. 

She placed her one of her hands flat on the table and grabbed the note in her other hand.  Looking up at him with a vicious grin, Betty said “ And, if I really wanted to insult the South Side, I could. Because _this_ paper says you need to write for the paper, come hell or high water.” 

Jughead swallowed hard but seemed impressed. He brushed his thumb across his nose before saying, “You’re playing a dangerous game, Cooper.”

“It’s not a game if we both win,” She pointed out as he turned to walk away. 

“Oh, and Betty?” He called over his shoulder, “It was nine. Articles-you, uh wrote. Defending the southside and the Serpents.” 

She was taken aback by the observation. She didn’t think anyone had read them-aside from her enraged parents. He had a soft look in his eyes and there was something implicit, something unspoken, something that almost came off as  _I noticed. I care._  

It was the lightest her heart felt in a long time. Maybe since the beginning of the school year.

“I’ll have your first assignment for you tomorrow!” She shouted after him, grinning as he waved in response. 

\-- 

Betty quickly learned that running laps with Veronica meant running half of a lap and then walking leisurely as she complained about the new smoothie shop that had taken the place of the old, run-down frozen yogurt store. 

It’s not that Betty wasn’t interested in the conversation, it’s just that she had other things on her mind. Other _people_ , rather. She was still reeling from her conversation with Jughead and she couldn’t help but feel a little excited. Sure he was only going to be interacting with her because he had to, but it was better than nothing. Maybe they could be friends again. Betty tried not to get too far ahead of herself because he was still the same guy who  shunned her the first time around. If nothing changed between them, he might just do it again. 

 _And it’ll just hurt all over again._ Her brain reminded her. 

And then there was _S_. Who she was growing more and more concerned about. She kept thinking about their first messages. About feeling like an outsider or having nothing to lose. Surely, that couldn’t be true, could it? Everyone had _something_ -even Betty did. Even if she lost her friends, at least she had her family even if they drove her crazy. 

“I mean I ordered a _green_ smoothie-which implies greens! And they served me some orange looking monstrosity-Betty! B, are you even listening?” Veronica waved a hand in front of her face and Betty snapped out of her own thoughts.

“Yeah,” Betty responded quickly, “Sorry, just-got caught up in my own thoughts.” 

“Well snap out of it,” Veronica said playfully, her light tone removing any bite the statement had, “We’re talking about a _disgrace_ to the holy foundation of smoothies.” 

“Doesn’t your dad own the joint?” Betty asked, “Can’t he look into…I don’t know, quality control or something?”

“Daddy is a _stakeholder_ , not an owner,” V corrected and Betty held in a sigh. Veronica seemed to be on an upswing with her father, if the term _daddy_ was any indication. 

Betty paid more attention as Veronica continued talking, but her gaze was caught on a group of leather-jacket wearing students who were lingering outside of the track field, smoking behind the fence. The closer she walked to them, the more clearly she could make out who was who amongst the group. There was Toni with her pink hair that was far too colorful to miss. There was the other serpent Betty had run into the other day, Fangs, on her right side. They were laughing at a video on her phone together with a third Serpent-Sweet Pea.  Absently, Betty wondered if outlandish names were a pre-requisite to joining the gang. 

The only one in the group who wasn’t enthralled by _whatever_ was on Toni’s phone was Jughead. He was a few feet away from the group, sitting against a tree with a book on his lap and phone in his hand. 

The wind blew a bit stronger and both Betty and Veronica shivered-it was a crisp fifty degrees outside. Their yellow baseball tee practice shirts did little to provide warmth. 

“Let’s head inside after this lap,” Veronica suggested as they rounded the corner, passing the Serpents.

 _We’d be warmer if we were actually running_ , Betty thought. Instead, after she felt as though they were safely out of earshot she mentioned, “You know, something weird happened today. Jughead joined the Blue and Gold.” 

“What? Jughead _Jones_?” Veronica asked in disbelief, as if they even knew of another person named Jughead. 

“Keep your voice down,” she hissed, “And _yes_ , obviously him!” 

Veronica looked at her with wide-eyes, “I don’t think that’s such a good idea Betty.” 

“Why not?” Betty wondered. 

“He’s…he’s trouble, Betty,” Veronica supplied vaguely, “Just take my word for it.” 

“Take your word for it?” Betty repeated defensively, “That’s hardly fair, I’ve known him for way longer than you have, Veronica.”

“Does _anyone_ know Jughead?” she bit back, “You haven’t spoken to him in _months_ Betty, you can’t really judge his character. He’s a serpent now. I know you and Archie used to be friends with him, but that’s in the past. And maybe it should stay that way.”

“Well I can’t just-kick him off the paper or whatever,” Betty argued, “He’s required to write for me by Higgenbottham.” 

Veronica looked unappeased, “Whatever-just stay away from him, okay?”

Betty shook her head-she had no idea why her best friend was acting so weird. Was it out of jealousy? Was she worried Betty would be closer with Jughead than with her? Betty couldn’t tell, but it annoyed her nonetheless.

“On your left,” A breathless voice announced from behind them. Betty and Veronica shifted out of the way just in time for Trev to sprint past them.

“Well look who’s running again,” Veronica said with a smirk, “Nice calves, Trev!” 

“What do you mean ‘again’?” Betty asked.

Veronica looked at her curiously, “You didn’t you hear? He quit cross-country in September. But rumor has it he asked to join the track team for their spring season first thing this morning.” 

Betty watched Trev as he continued running the track with wide eyes. Could it be…? 

When they returned inside, she checked her phone eagerly. She found a message on the tumblr account, sent over an hour prior:

 

_Sorry, busy weekend. Family drama, the works._

_But I’m willing to try anything once. So I gave your advice a shot, think it might all work out._

_-S_

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> wow-I just want to say that I'm BLOWN away by the response to this story. I can't thank you guys enough for all of the feedback! I'm so excited to keep writing this story and I hope you all enjoy the journey! :)
> 
> as always you can find me at aswellingstorm.tumblr.com


	3. forgotten

_Family drama? Do you want to talk about it? I’m sure you’ve heard my family’s had their fair share of it. And I’m really happy to hear that, S._

_-Elizabeth_

 

Betty wanted to ask what hobby in particular _S_ had reignited, but knew better than to push her luck. S was very guarded, but that was no surprise given how they wouldn’t even allow their initial question to be published. They were cautious, but maybe they had a reason to be.

 

_My family is a bit different than the nuclear family gone awry._

_-S_

Betty raised an eyebrow at the message. She was sitting in her room, ready to go to bed, when she read it. She glanced over at the photo she had of her family, tucked neatly into the frame of her mirror. It was a professional portrait, taken a little less than a year ago- _before_ everything went down. They were all wearing blue jeans and white shirts and had big flashy smiles on. Maybe they _were_ a perfect, nuclear family.

 

But it never felt that way to her. Even before Polly became pregnant, everything felt so…forced.  Every issue, every fight, every hurt feeling was just brushed under the rug and never dicussed. Betty could recall a particular time a few years ago when Polly had made her so angry. Her blood was boiling over a topic she couldn’t quite remember, but she had to sit next to her sister in silence at the dinner table. Because expressing that anger would be “impolite”.  

 

The perfection behind the Cooper name wasn’t natural. Every move was carefully planned and articulated. If the world ever viewed them as perfect, it was because Alice willed it so.

 

_Nuclear doesn’t mean happy. The Cooper closet is filled with skeletons and I’m afraid Polly was just the tip of the iceberg._

_-Elizabeth_

It was a little over an hour before she received a response. She was about to turn off the lamp next to her bed and call it a night when she heard a little _ding!_ on her phone.

 

_Before I tell you this, I think it’s fair to remind you that you promised not to use this for your paper or-tell anyone. Even if you did, I doubt it’d make a difference anymore. But my family isn’t…really a family anymore. We’re divided, we were split right in half a few months ago. My dear old dad has always been a drinker. When he couldn’t quit that or any of his other bad habits, my mom took my sister and skipped town._

_And you’re right…even when we were all together like one big family, we were always eons away from even loosely fitting the definition of “happy”. For what it’s worth, at least you can use those skeletons at Halloween._

_-S_

 

Betty felt herself smile at the last comment, but such a smile didn’t last long when her brain processed the words she had just read.

 

_Wait_

_Um_

_Excuse me_

_Your mother just /left/ you?_

_With your father? Who she knows is an alcoholic?_

_Am I understanding this right?_

_-Elizabeth_

Guilt at complaining over her family’s own issues, which seemed petty now, threatened to consume her. This was much, much worse than she had originally thought. Call Alice Cooper what you want, but she in all of her Type A glory would’ve never left Betty or Polly behind if Hal was doing something….like _that_. Thankfully, the response was immediate.

 

_Careful with your stones there, Cooper. I like to believe she would’ve taken me if she had the funds._

_Skipping town, leaving your house, your job, your friends, everything behind because of one asshole isn’t easy…or cheap, for that matter._

_-S_

This was much worse than a simple “I think my boyfriend has feelings for my best friend! What do I do?” ask. This was far more complicated. And sad.

 

_I’m sorry. You have a point. It must’ve been really hard for her. Does your dad at least take care of you?_

_-Elizabeth_

_Ha._

_He can hardly take care of himself._

_His hands are tied right now_

_In other obligations_

_I mean_

_And that’s for the best._

_-S_

_For the best? That’s completely unfair to you. He’s supposed to…I don’t know. Provide for you? Be there for you?_

_-Elizabeth_

_Make sure I have a paper brown bag for lunch and 50 cents to buy myself some pop after school? Gee, wouldn’t that be the dream! He’s not a nice guy when he’s drunk or even when he’s sober… so if he’s not around than that’s just a blessing in disguise._

_-S_

_But if he’s not around and your mom and sister left…then you don’t have a family…_

_-Elizabeth_

_Ah yes, welcome to the Tragedy. There are guest souvenir shirts available for your purchase, but please no flash photography on the tour._

_-S_

Part of her wanted to believe that this wasn’t true. That this was some bored kid trying to get attention on the internet. But this felt like…more than that.

 

_This is serious. Honestly. Are you okay? Are you at home? Or do you live way from him? Does anyone other than me know about this?_

_-Elizabeth_

_You’re starting to sound like a social worker._

_Don’t bother. Like I said, he’s not around so I don’t live with him. The people who need to know, already know. Okay?_

_-S_

Her heart dropped when she saw the green circle next to their name disappear. It was only 11:30pm, so she feared she had scared S off.

 

_You didn’t answer my first question. Are you okay?_

_-Elizabeth_

Betty put her phone down on her night stand-already knowing she shouldn’t be expecting a response. With muddled thoughts that lamented the struggle of a stranger, she stared at the ceiling of her room. In the midst of her concerns, a realization hit her.

 

She had to figure out was behind anonymous-S.

 

What she would do after figuring out who it was, she wasn’t quite sure. But she knew she had to figure out their identity somehow. The game had completely changed, this was a different matter entirely. S needed her help in more than just sporadic tumblr messages.

 

And luckily for her, she already had a lead.

\--

 

She woke up on Tuesday, frustrated her message had been left unanswered. The frustration continued all throughout her morning, until she cracked and sent another message.

 

_S, I’m sorry. I wasn’t trying to judge you or cast stones at your mother. I don’t want to pry in your personal life. I’m sure this situation has been messy enough and you don’t need me acting like the morality police. If you’re away from him, that’s great. I don’t want to be your social  worker.  I know you’re not okay-that’s why you messaged me in the first place, right?_

_I just want you to know that I care about you._

_-Elizabeth._

It was a bit jumpy and kind of all over the place. It felt like word vomit, but she had to admit she was a bit desperate to get S to respond. Even if they didn’t tell her anything, she felt comfort in knowing that if they replied…at least they were okay.

 

A nagging part of her brain reminded her that one day, they may stop responding altogether. Maybe before she could figure out who they are. She attempted to shove those thoughts to the side.

 

“You look like you’re about to short-circuit,” Kevin noticed from his post at her side.

 

It was only then she had realized she had long-ago tucked her phone back into her pocket and was standing in the middle of the hallway with her locker open, door hanging expectantly.

 

Her eyes focused in on what-or who she had been staring at.

 

Trevor Brown.

 

She looked back at Kevin, “So, tell me Kev-what exactly do you know about Trevor Brown?”

 

“Why?” He asked curiously, before jumping elatedly, “Does Betty Cooper have a non-Archie crush?”

 

“ _Shh!_ ” she hissed, “keep your voice down! You know that died _months_ ago!”

 

“Thank god it did,” Kevin agreed wistfully.

 

“And _no_ I don’t like Trev,” Betty denied. And it was true. Trevor as a romantic possibility for her never really crossed her mind. But he was pretty nice. And kinda cute.

 

“What info do you want then?” Kevin asked, leaning in and adjusting the strap on his back pack. “Are you writing an exposè on him? If you give me fourty-eight hours, I can probably get his social security number.”

 

“No,” she shook her head, “No-nothing like that. Also-very concerned that you can… _do_ that somehow.”

 

Kevin rolled his eyes as if it were no big deal. “What do you want from me then?”

 

“Just… I don’t know, anything. Know any hot goss about him?” Betty shrugged in an attempt to look coy, but accidentally locked eyes with Trev. She quickly waved to him, which he returned with a warm smile.

 

“First of all-Betty Cooper, engaging in ‘hot goss’? Definitley putting a pin in this one. Secondly-I _just_ saw you air-flirt with him, so I’m going with the whole crush theory, third-no. I don’t know anything about him. And quite frankly I’m upset you think of me as nothing more than an overflowing fountain of gossip. You know if you were really looking for gossip you could’ve just read your own paper that you spend so much time editing…” Kevin continued to rant on, but Betty was carefully evaluating what he had just said.

 

He didn’t know anything about Trev. And Kevin pretty much knew everything about everyone, he was widely regarded as the school confidant. He “just had one of those faces, you know?”, he liked to claim. His dad being the sheriff of Riverdale also helped.  But if he didn’t know anything about Trev, that could mean Betty was way off.

 

Or, that she was spot on. If Trev really was going through everything he claimed to be in the messages-it’d make sense that he’d want to be anonymous. No one would know what he was going though if he kept it private. Which S so clearly wanted. If he’s trying to protect himself, he wouldn’t go around and wear his heart on his sleeve.

 

“But like I said,” Kevins voice faded back in, “The most scandalous thing about him is that his mother’s been on a business trip for like six months now.”

 

“What?” She turned to him with wide eyes.

 

“Yeah, exactly,” Kevin agreed, “Six months in Perrysburg? Like what even is the state of Ohio?”

 

_Oh god_ , Betty thought to herself, _it’s him. S is Trev._

 

\--

Betty had spent the rest of the day expanding on her Trev theory. He had always been kind of quiet.

 

He was also always a jock. From elementary school on, she could recall him wearing football, basketball, baseball uniforms. It seemed like  anything the school offered as a sport, he played.

 

When they got to high school, he ditched the other sports and stuck to running. He claimed it was in the interest of keeping up with his studies, but now Betty found herself wondering if it was more than that.

 

And then there was the fact that he had quit cross country earlier this year. He went from playing every sport in the book to being part of none. There was something suspicious there.

 

Right after Betty had suggested he return to something old to feel like himself again, he joined the track team. It felt all too coincidental.

 

But something didn’t feel completely right about this. She’d spoken to Trev a few times, she might even consider them friends. Or at the very least, acquantances.

 

And he didn’t talk the way he sounded over text. Which didn’t rule him out entirely-maybe he was just more guarded in person. But somehow it felt like there was a personality split between S and Trev.

 

She tried to talk to him before lunch, asking him general questions. If he was excited to be running again, if he felt he was doing any better in English. She tried to play it casual and he was all smiles so it felt natural.

 

Until Veronica pulled her away with an arched brow and mouth in a tight line. She very politely informed Betty that the interaction was, in fact, not at all casual. It was weird. And now Veronica thought that Betty was up to something.

 

Which, she was. But Veronica couldn’t know that. Betty decided that this has to remain a secret, out of respect for S. But now she’s worried that if she was as awkward as Veronica claimed in her attempt to sleuth, than maybe she freaked S out.

 

But maybe it had cleared whatever bad air was between them. She received another message only moments after their “awkward” interaction.

 

_No need to apologize. Sometimes I just kind of, I don’t know…I assume people just know what’s going on with me. Like they can read my mind. He’s been out of my life for a few months now and as much as that’s helped me, it was also like…throwing a match in a gas tank. I realized who was there for me and who wasn’t. Unfortunately, the list of people who were there for me was far shorter than those who weren’t…So I made new friends. Except that hasn’t been going great. And I guess that’s why I started to message you. Because it’s like no matter what I do, I feel less and less like myself. It’s like I’m snuffing out the person I am in order to survive as someone I’m not._

_I know you care about everyone. That’s also why I started to message you. I’m just not used to people caring so much about me anymore._

_-S_

\--

_Your friends weren’t there for you when you told them about all of the stuff your dad put you through? I mean, sorry to say this-but what the hell? Didn’t they care? I don’t mean to bring up old wounds but…I don’t blame you for seeking new friends. What hasn’t been going great with that?_

_I know this is weird to say because we don’t really know each other and all but…I don’t want you to change. You seem pretty great the way you are. And yes I know that’s so cheesy or whatever. But you’re not the one who needs to change S, it’s not your fault your friends weren’t there for you or your dad has a drinking problem or your mom had to leave town. None of that is your fault._

_I do care about you. And I’m glad you started messaging me. And, just throwing this out there but…if you ever wanted to be friends outside of our little pen-pal relationship and go grab some food at Pop’s, I’d be totally down._  

_-Elizabeth_

_\--_

_Tempting offer, but I think I’ll stick to hiding behind my screen like a social recluse._

_You do know me in real life-and that’s all I’ll say. So maybe you just like my online persona._

_Maybe if you really knew me, you wouldn’t be so hellbent on me staying the same._

_Anyway, with my old friends…it’s a little more complicated than that. Our friendship started dying before I could even tell them what was going on. By the time everything went down I just decided…it wasn’t worth it. You know? Like they already didn’t care, I didn’t want to guilt-trip them into being friends with me. I don’t need pity. I don’t want it, either._

_And as for my new friends, they think I’m still friends with my old-friends, who they hate. So it’s a weird, friendless-limbo for me._

_Maybe you’re right and maybe it isn’t my fault all of these things happen. But it’s easier to blame myself._

_-S_

_\--_

_I guess that’s where I come in, huh? To be some all-knowing, friendly angel guiding you to friend-heaven? Too far? Probably._

_Do you know for sure that they don’t care? Did you ever talk about it, or was it some unspoken, weird fizzling out thing? --_

 

“Are you serious?” Jughead’s voice was astounded and angry, “You want me to write a column on school _lunches_?”

 

He stormed into the office, snapping her away from her message. Discreetly, she shoved her phone into her back pocket.

 

Betty had just emailed Jughead his first topic. A piece on what was cooking in the cafeteria now that the same amount of staff was responsible for feeding double the students.

 

“You like food, don’t you?” Betty asked innocently from where we was sitting on top of her table. Absently, she kicked her legs a bit.

 

“That hardly qualifies as food, Betty,” he squinted his eyes.

 

“Okay well, it’s the best I’ve got. Tina and Ginger do the gossip column, Dilton reports on nature sightings, Midge does horoscopes, Moose writes some shockingly insightful movie reviews, Reggie reports on fitness tips and Trev does sports,” She listed off, “So unless you want to write about the weather, you can stick to food.”

 

Jughead rolled his eyes, “First of all, Toni is like 90% sure that Midge just copies and pastes horoscopes that she finds online, and how the hell could you assign Moose to movie reviews over me?”

 

“Toni, huh?” Betty asked with a coy smile. Jughead didn’t really hang out with girls much, at least he didn’t used to. But he also never hung out with guys either. It used to feel like Betty and Archie were the only people Jughead actually wanted to be around. But things were different now.  And he was always hanging out with his Serpent friends and the times where Jughead was seen without his cotton-candy haired friend were few and far between.

 

Now was one of those times. Betty felt a bit relieved-Toni didn’t seem to like her too much. None of the Serpents were particularly friendly towards her or anyone from the Northside. Maybe Jughead was the only one who cared about the articles she had written in their defense.

 

“What?” He responded quickly, “No. _Ew_. Never.”

 

Betty gave him a _look_ , one that was shrouded in disbelief. “Okay, we kissed like once and we both decided there was… _nothing_ there. I-look, I don’t’ even know why I told you that. Point is, Moose doesn’t even appreciate cinema like I do.”

 

“Moose was on my staff first,” Betty pointed out, “He got first-pick.”

 

“Oh I’m sorry that he started failing English before me,” Jughead narrowed his eyes, unimpressed, “And I think you’re forgetting I wasn’t even here when you restarted the paper.”

 

“I didn’t forget,” Betty stood up and faced him, “But it’s not like you even cared to say goodbye when you left.”

 

Betty looked him in the eyes, she remembered the day after he left. He didn’t show up to any of their classes. Which was weird. At that point, they still hadn’t spoken in a few months but she at least knew he’d never skip school. Maybe he was sick. But the next day he still wasn’t there. She offered to collect his homework and bring it to him when one of their teachers informed her that he had been transferred to Southside High.

 

While being on the receiving end of his cold shoulder hurt, it was nothing compared to the punch-in-the-gut feeling when she realized he had left. His dad had, apparently, been caught  drug trafficking and sent off to prison with no chance of parole. When Betty asked Archie, he was just as clueless as she was. Jughead was taken in by a family on the Southside and that was that.

 

Not being friends with Jughead hurt in a lot of ways, but that hurt the most. Because ignoring her attempts to talk or hang out was one thing, but leaving without saying a word sealed the deal. He didn’t want anything to do with her.

 

“Oh, I’m the one who didn’t care?” Jughead asked in a manner that was clear he didn’t want an answer, “That’s _hilarious_.”

 

“What is that supposed to mean?” She wondered, but his back was already turned and headed for the door.

 

She ran after him and grabbed him with a soft hand around his leather-clad arm. He looked at her with surprise. “I never understood why,” She confessed, “Why you just left Riverdale High without saying goodbye or…or why you stopped talking to me-and Archie! To both of us.”

 

He pulled his arm out of her grip lightly, shrugging his shoulders to straighten his jacket. “I got pretty sick of watching you pine after him just for him to treat you like dirt,” He claimed-but Betty recognized it as only half of the truth.

 

“Jones,” Toni appeared outside of the doorway with Sweet Pea, “Let’s roll. We gotta find Fangs.”

 

They were already walking away before Jughead had a chance to join them.

 

“Maybe you would understand if you actually remembered,” Jughead spoke so lowly, only the two of them could hear.

 

And what the hell did that mean? Remember what, exactly?

 

_Because if it was an unspoken, weird fizzling out thing there’s one thing I’ve learned:you should always follow up. It’s not easy, it’s awkward. But it doesn’t have to be confrontational-just get confirmation that they’d rather not be a part of your life. It may give you some closure._

_I would want to know you in person, if only just to prove you wrong about wanting you to change._

_And-just because it’s easier to shoulder the blame, doesn’t mean you should, S._

_-Elizabeth_

 

\--

Betty decided to check out the smoothie shop after school. Maybe it wasn’t as bad as Veronica was making it out to be.

 

She walked into the store, called Jungle Juice, and was a bit surprised at what she saw. There was a decent line of people but, although the shop had only been open a few days, the interior looked…dirty.

 

As if no one had bothered to sweep or mop the floors after closing. There was a sticky-purple ick on the table that looked wildly unappetizing. Something told her she should just turn around and walk out of the door, but the workers behind the bar already noticed her and that would be…rude, wouldn’t it?

 

As for the workers themselves, they didn’t seem like the kind of people who’d actively enjoy working in a smoothie shop. The both the one in Greendale and the one in Smithstown all employed teenagers or people in their early twenties, mostly college kids. But everyone who worked here looked like they were in their thirties and looked… _gruff_. Muscular, sweaty, and like they’d rather be anywhere else. It was a very confusing sight.

 

When it was Betty’s turn to order, she played it safe and asked for a small strawberry-banana smoothie. It was prepared and handed to her in a concerningly short amount of time and when she thanked the man, he responded with a low, scratchy “Whatever, kid.”

 

She was more than eager to get out of there, purse tight to her body as she walked out. The sun was setting soon and, oddly enough, there were only a few cars out on mainstreet. One was a well-worn minivan, with bits of rusted paint on the side that looked oddly familiar. She squinted her eyes a bit and saw Jughead sitting in the drivers seat-who quickly pushed the seat back and hid down to avoid her gaze.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello everyone! just wanted to thank you all again for all of the incredible feedback i've continued to receive on this story!!! it really does mean a lot to me that so many people are enjoying it so-thank you. 
> 
> another point i want to make is that there will be overlying conflicts (similar to s1 and s2) with hiram/the serpents that will NOT be completely resolved here. this story is meant to focus on betty and jughead's relationship and if they can come back together (or even be something more...). i'm considering making this a series wherein our favorite sleuthing duo solves some of these external issues, but for the sake of Ask Elizabeth, not every issue will be completely resolved at the end
> 
> as always you can find me at @aswellingstorm.tumblr.com!


	4. shamthie

But it was too late-Betty already saw him and found herself feeling a mixture of amused and mortified. She marched over to his car and rapidly tapped on the window as he attempted to escape her notice by throwing a blanket on top of himself.

 

“Jughead! I know you’re in there! I _can still_ see you,” She hissed through her teeth, knocking on the window with increased vigor, “What are you doing in there? Jughead!”

 

He sat up abruptly and put his finger to his mouth in a “ _sh_!” motion, looking around to see if anyone had noticed them. The street was empty and he nodded his head to the passenger seat, motioning for her to come inside.

 

Wearily, she opened the door and took a seat next to him.

 

“So…” Betty started.

 

“So,” Jughead echoed before attempting to divert the conversation, “As you can see I got my license.”

 

The maneuver didn’t work. She looked at him, unfazed, “What are you doing Jughead? Are you _spying_ on me now?”

 

“What? No!” he denied, “Why the hell would I be spying on you?”

 

“I don’t know why ‘the hell’,” she made exaggerated air quotes with her fingers, “You do most of the things you do.”

 

He looked offended by both the spying accusation and her latter remark. “Well I’m _not_ spying on you. I’m doing a stake out.”

 

“A stake out?” she deadpanned, eyebrow raised, “For what?”

 

“For…uh, the paper,” he braced himself for her response.

 

“For the paper? _My_ paper? The Blue and Gold?” Betty asked, “Jughead, this has nothing to do with school lunches!”

 

“You said I had to write a food column, so I’m writing a food column!” He debate. Clearly he believed he had found a loophole and clung onto it for dear life.

 

“On what? The smoothie shop? That’s already been open for a week? It’s hardly _news_ ,” She shook her head, bringing up her smoothie to taste it.

 

“Betty I wouldn’t-”

 

Before he could finish, she took a sip of her smoothie while maintaining her eye contact with him to relay how _disappointed_ she was in him for-

 

_What._

_The._

_Holy._

_Hell._

_Was._

_That?_

 

As soon as the thick, goopy liquid hit her tongue, she blanched. Her nose wrinkled in disgust and her eyes squinted with unshed tears.

 

Her body shuddered with the after taste of-of-of whatever in God’s holy name she just tasted. Whatever that smoothie was-it was entirely too sweet. And also too sour? Somehow it was both _hot_ and freezing cold.

 

 _What. The. Hell._ Her mind repeated in blatant disgust. She held the foam cup away from her, regarding it with weary eyes. She had never felt so betrayed. Strawberry banana was her go to flavor. Her holy grail. And now it was forever marred by this god-awful smoothie.

 

“That,” Jughead said, barely containing his laughter, “Was a pretty cute depiction of the _Jungle Juice_ phenomenon.”

 

Her eyes snapped to his, tongue still burning with disgust. _Did he just call me cute?_ She wondered, face warming in the slightest. He said stuff like _that_ before. When they were actually friends. Like how he’d roast Archie for not getting an obscure movie reference, but told Betty her lack of cinematic experience was “endearing”. It always made her blush.

 

“You knew?” Her voice was thin, “You _knew_ this was going to be horrible-absolutely disgusting, and you didn’t _warn_ me?”

 

Despite his best efforts, he couldn’t calm down his laughter. It was lighter than laughter, more pure. It actually sounded like he was _giggling_. Jughead Jones. Serpent Prince. Giggling. At her. And her apparent anger only made the situation that much more funny to him.

 

“I tried to!” He breathed out in between laughter, “But you didn’t let me finish!”

 

“I mean-what the hell? What the _hell_ is this?” She asked, revolted. Her gaze turned back to the offending cup-hands wrapped around it like she wanted to strangle it. “Guess Veronica was right.”

 

She only mumbled  the phrase but she saw him tense at the name out of the corner of her eye.

 

“I think it’s a cover,” he stated, laughter completely disappiated from his voice. “Everyone who’s had a smoothie here has had the same reaction. There’s no way they’re a real smoothie shop.”

 

Betty looked at him curiously, “What are you suggesting?”

 

He kept his gaze straight ahead, looking at the side of the shop. “It’s gotta be a front. Not sure for what-maybe, I don’t know-drugs?”

 

“Who’s running the front?” She asked skeptically. She didn’t want to imply she was following his crazy theory but, hypothetically, if she were…

 

“I have a few theories. All of the workers inside are Ghoulies,” He nodded to the window of the shop. The workers inside mulled around halfheartedly sweeping a floor that clearly needed to be mopped.

 

 _Ghoulies_. Betty knew the name. They were another gang in the Southside. A rival gang, if she was correct in presuming.

 

“So this is a _gang_ thing?” She felt irritation swell within her. She clearly didn’t have a problem with the Serpents. They’d never done anything wrong, not to her at least. For a gang, they seemed pretty nonthreatening. But maybe she was only minimalizing the threat they posed because her former best friend was a part of them. And they were formerly lead by said former best friends father. But she knew the Ghoulies were more dangerous. And it was apparent to her now that this had very little to do with the _Blue and Gold_.

 

He shot her a guilty look, “It’s not _just_ a gang thing. I’m double dipping. I can expose the Ghoulies for whatever the hell they’re up to and give you a great headliner. Two birds.”

 

She looked at him in disbelief and felt herself getting angrier, “You’re not bringing a gang war into the Blue and Gold. You’re not bringing your-your _Serpent_ life into this! Just because you chose to join them, doesn’t mean you get to drag me or my paper into it!”

 

“I didn’t choose to join the Serpents, Betty,” She could see a mirrored anger in his eyes, “I did what I had to do to _survive_.”

 

Betty pursed her lips, his words gave her pause. She should be nice. She should apologize for not understanding. But dammit, it was his fault she didn’t understand, so screw that.

 

“How am I supposed to know that?” She countered, “You know, I want to understand you. But I can’t. I operate on minimal knowledge of your life, Jughead,- _below_ minimal actually. And you just-I don’t know, you expect me to somehow know everything you’ve been through.”

 

He looked at her and Betty saw something flash in his eyes. She wasn’t quite sure what it was. A realization, maybe? But either way, he said nothing in response.

 

She reached for the door, “Forget about it. Take movie reviews-or, or whatever. Don’t even write for the paper. I’ll just slap your name over one of my columns so you don’t fail English.”

 

“Wait!” He called out before she could push the handle, arm reaching out towards her. It was so similar to the position they’d been in earlier today, but with the roles reversed. “I-look. I’m sorry. It’s just…you know…” he trailed off, eyes clearly hoping she’d interject before he could speak. When it was obvious that wasn’t going to happen, he continued, “When I moved to the Southside after…everything with my dad, I had a giant target on my back, okay?”

 

“Because of the Serpents?” she wondered.

“I didn’t want to join,” he explained, “But I was the son of their leader. People who idealized my father were the last people I wanted to be around.”

 

Something about that phrase struck a chord within her. She made a mental note to think it over later.

 

“But I didn’t have a choice. The Ghoulies kept giving me shit, whether or not I was part of the Serpents. And I figured if I was gonna get my ass kicked, it’d be better to get it kicked with people by my side.” He said, “But the problem is I don’t exactly…’fit in’ with the Serpents.” He made air quotes, accompanied by a roll of his eyes.

 

Betty recalled the afternoon on the track field where she watched him sit in solitude.  But still, was having a hard time comprehending what he was telling her.

 

“Jughead…it’s a gang,” She stated plainly, “I mean don’t you, by very definition of the word, kind of-you know, _have_ to fit in?”

 

“They still think I’m a Northsider,” he explained with a roll of his eyes.

 

“Aren’t you though?” Betty pointed out, “I mean…this is where you grew up. This is home.”

 

“This,” His eyebrows were drawn upwards, “This _was_ home.”

 

She looked out across the street where they were parked. She had to admit it didn’t look much like she remembered growing up. Shops were boarded up and abanonded or recently purchased. Some were brand new, with Hiram’s seal of approval slapped over it.

 

Aside from that, even the stores that remained the same felt…different now. The clothing store where she fondly remembered buying her first communion dress was sullied by the explosive argument she witnessed between her mother and her sister outside of the store front. Even Pop’s, which used to conjure up good memories of Jughead, her and Archie sitting in a booth for hours on end, fell to the more recent memories of her Veronica and Archie-where she felt like a third wheel.

 

Maybe this place wasn’t home to her anymore. Just like Jughead.

 

 “Anyway,” Jughead cleared his throat, “Ever since the merger, the Serpents have been under a lot of heat from Mayor McCoy about drugs.”

 

“But the Serpents don’t deal,” Betty commented, earning a soft smile.

 

“Right. So if I can prove that the Ghoulies are somehow involved in this-”

 

“Then you’ll clear the Serpent name and hopefully land in their good graces,”  She surmised.

 

He nodded and Betty could feel some of the tension between them diffuse. It almost felt like they were back on the same page.

 

“Well,” Betty exhaled, “You can count me in.”

 

“Really?” He looked at her with a grin, “You’ll let me publish it?”

 

“No promises,” She said sternly, “But I’m here to help you stake out.”

 

“Oh-uh, no-you don’t have to do that,” He looked a bit nervous now. When she gave him a curious look he added quickly, “It’s just that-uh, stake outs take a really long time, you know? I could be here for hours!”

 

“Well,” she replied cheekily, “I hope you bought enough snacks for the two of us.”

 

This was an added complication that made messaging _S_ a bit more difficult. But she managed to check the account when Jughead was busy dutifully watching the shop.

 

_Shouldering the blame is what I’m best at. Seriously. Can I major in that when I get to college? I could earn my PhD in a matter of months. And it wasn’t really a fizzle. Or maybe it was. It was just kind of a slow, drawn out fizzle that had been happening for a while. And then there was this big thing that I kind of needed their support at and I planned to come clean to them about my family then. But when they didn’t show up it was like the straw that broke the camels back. I realized they didn’t care. There’s really no following up to that, I’m afraid._

_-S_

_Well, guess I’ll see you at graduation day. Except my doctorate will probably be for an inability to let things go. I’m sorry your friend situation kind of sucks. Have you considered a different option and just hanging out with entirely new people, kind of like a clean slate?_

_-Elizabeth._

_\--_

They sat in relative silence for what felt like an eternity. It was beginning to get dark outside and the gray overcast skies with splashes of rain didn’t help.

 

It was around 7:30 pm when her phone rang.

 

 _“Elizabeth!”_ Her mother’s voice sounded unpleasantly shrill over the phone, “ _Where are you?”_

 

Jughead’s hands were draped lazily over the steering wheel as he gazed ahead. He didn’t move much, the only indication that he heard Alice was the way his eyebrows shot straight up.

 

“I’m working on something for the paper right now,” Betty sighed.

 

“ _Am I supposed to be a minder reader now? You never told me that!”_

Betty chewed her lip, “I thought I texted you.”

 

And it’s true-she intended on texting her mother about her unplanned detour. Not with the exact details, but with vague ones that could help get the point across-she wouldn’t be home.

 

“ _Well you didn’t!_ ” Her mother sounded angry, yelling loudly into the receiver of their home phone. “ _I needed you to help with the twins tonight! I have to get my work done and I can’t concentrate with their constant crying!”_

Betty rolled her eyes. “I’m sor-”

 

_“Sorry doesn’t cut it! Honestly, what is the matter with you? Everything keeps falling through the cracks with you. I’m checking your student grade portal missy and if there’s even so much as-”_

“Falling through the cracks?” Betty asked, eyes narrowing in irritation.

 

_“You didn’t remember Polly needed you to babysit.”_

 

The only reason Betty didn’t remember is because Polly never _asked_ her too. She just expected it. Like she always expected Betty to pick up her slack.

 

“I forgot one thing mom,” Betty’s voice felt incredibly small and God, did she wish she wasn’t having this conversation while someone else was within earshot.

 

_“And now what? I’m stuck taking care of them because you’re working on your silly little paper?”_

 

_Silly. Little. Paper._

 

_“I mean honestly Elizabeth, you only care about yourself.”_

If her mother said anything other than that-Betty didn’t hear it. She gripped the lock button of her phone with such continued force that it shut off and all-but threw it into the cup holder, next to the abandoned smoothie.

 

“Behold,” Jughead gestured to the phone, “The conundrum of Betty Cooper.

 

“What are you talking about?” Betty asked.

 

He turned to her, body angled slightly over the console that separated them.

 

“You help other people,” He stated, “Right?”

 

“I guess.” Wasn’t it a narcisstic thing to admit? To take credit for helping other people?

 

“Through that ask column,” He clairified. She felt a heat rise in her cheeks-suddenly nervous about him asking about it. Worried the conversation would drift to S-that the secret messaging relationship would be exposed.

 

“I mean yeah, I guess.”

 

“You guess,” he laughed-but she didn’t really see the humor in it. “You care about other people. You care about, like, almost everyone in this stupid town?”

 

“Why wouldn’t I?” She retorted.

 

“Follow my line of thinking here. Betty Cooper helps everyone. Betty Cooper cares about  almost everyone.” When she nodded after each sentence he asked, “But who helps _you_? Who cares about _you_?”

 

It caught her off guard. Maybe not so much the question itself but why he felt the need to even ask her such a thing.

 

She looked at him for a minute, not sure how to answer. His eyes were boring into hers and it was clear he didn’t have an answer for her either. He wasn’t asking her to list names or conjure up a memory. It was clear he wasn’t even implying  himself-instead he was pointing out what she had already begun realizing.

 

That she was alone.

 

Kevin was too busy lately. Veronica was caught up in her fathers dealings. Polly was preoccupied with twins. Her mother was always tired and angry. Her father was barely around. She hadn’t even directly interacted with Archie for weeks.

 

And her former best friend was staring at her with sad eyes. There was only a center console separating them, but it felt like an ocean.

 

“You know,” she said, after a beat, “There used to be someone.”

 

Someone who’d come over to her house and watch movies with her when Archie was too busy. Who she attempted to learn how to play video games for when Archie bailed on him last minute. Someone who’d meet her at Pop’s late at night when she couldn’t sleep. Who’d run outside with her in the middle of a rainstorm because- _why_ _not_? Someone who’d help her memorize Spanish vocab words and tag along with her to the mall. Who ran across the entire school to deliver her lab-appropriate shoes so she wouldn’t have been docked points that day. Someone who held her when she cried after Archie told her he didn’t love her the way she wanted him to.

 

Someone who would’ve been great to have around during the ensuing mess.

 

“But that changed,” he muttered under his breath.

 

Her voice was steady but there was a brewing storm of emotions inside of her and she felt like she might cry. “It didn’t have to.”

 

For what felt like at least five eternities, the only sound was the soft pattering of rain.

 

\--

 

She almost dozed off when she felt something hit the side of her face. The sound of the rain must’ve nearly lulled her to sleep and without any messages from S, she didn’t have much to be awake for. Nearly an hour had gone by and there was no sign of suspicious activity from the shop-but the shop closed in half of an hour.

 

Another hit. Except this time she felt it near her ponytail and her sleepiness dulled her sense of reflexes. Irritated, she swatted her hand and tried to comb it out-earning another hit of _whatever it was_ to the side of her hand.

 

“Are you five years old?” She asked, feeling a smile creep up the corners of her mouth. She picked a piece of popcorn out of her hair.

 

He had a mischeivious look in his eyes, and she couldn’t help but laugh a little.

 

“You broke the first rule of stakeouts,” He said in a very faux-serious manner, hand perched with another piece of popcorn, “No sleeping!”

 

 She looked around, there were several pieces scattered by her feet. “How many did you throw before you actually managed to hit me?” She wondered.

 

He scoffed, “I never claimed to be an athlete.”

 

She scooped up the pieces laying around her and effortlessly tossed them back at him. He clearly wasn’t expecting any form of retaliation, if his face was any indication.

 

“That’s not fair,” he said over Betty’s laughter, “I wasn’t even sleeping!”

 

“So?” She giggled, rushing over to brush a kernel out of his hair. It was an easy movement, almost instinctual. She hadn’t even realized she had done it until she noticed the blush on his face.

 

“Maybe you have better aim,” he conceded, “But at least I can say I never tainted my palette with that sham smoothie.”

 

“Sham-thie,” she commented, before picking it up, “You know, you make a good point.”

 

“And what’s that?”

 

“You haven’t tried it,” she moved it closer to him, “ _That’s_ hardly fair.”

 

He looked at her, distinerested, “Oh it’s totally fair. I didn’t need convincing to know this whole damn shop-”

 

“C’mon Juggie,” she looked up at him through her lashes in a practice move, “it’ll be fun!”

 

“Fun for you, maybe,” he said but he grabbed the Styrofoam cup from her regardless, “You know-you’ve been doing that whole-I don’t know, puppy eyes trick since we were kids. It shouldn’t still work as well as it does.”

 

Betty grinned victoriously, “It has a 100% success rate.”

 

When he took a sip from the smoothie, his face contorted into one of revulsion.

 

“Oh my god,” he moaned, “It’s burning-why the hell? How? How is it freezing now?”

 

She couldn’t contain her laughter-finally she understood why he was laughing so hard at her earlier.

 

“This is a sin,” he slammed the cup back down into the console holder, “This is a _complete and total_ sin. This is a disgrace to the art of culinary. This is worse than-“

 

“When we watched that poor girl drop her whole trap of cupcake on Cupcake Wars?” She finished with a bright smile.

 

“Absolutely,” he agreed, having a hard time swallowing, “I mean, this redefines the word _devastating_.”

 

“It’s pretty bad,” she concurred, “But nothing can beat that time when Archie spilled his milkshake at Pop’s-“

 

“So then we ordered him another one, and he spilled that too?” Jughead recalled, starting to laugh in unison with Betty.

 

She recalled the look of absolute horror on Archie’s face-one that can only come from spilling two strawberry milkshakes in the span of a minute. How Pop Tate just shook his head and mumbled something about needing more mop water. While Jughead looked more disappopionted than he’d ever been before. It was hilarious in the moment, and even more hilarious to recall.

 

“And then we just left Pop a big tip and left because we were so embarrassed,” Betty said through her tears.

 

They were quiet as they calmed down from their laughter, slowly steadying their breathing.

 

Betty noticed a car approaching. She furrorwed her brows, finding it odd that anyone would be out in the Northside on a weeknight. As the car approached, the streetlights reflected the insignia on the front bumper. _Jagugar._ Betty only knew one person in Riverdale that owned a Jaguar.

 

After a beat, Jughead spoke,  “You know…it’s weird. What happened with us-I always, well not _always_ , but I kind of grew to expect that stuff from Archie because he’s always been a flake. But maybe it hurt more because you- _ow!_ ”

 

As the car grew closer, Betty quickly realized her and Jughead could easily be seen in passing. Quickly she slid down the passenger seat onto the floor of the car and grabbed Jughead’s wrist, motioning him to follow suit.   

 

“What’s going on?” he asked, hilariously having to duck his head under the steering wheel of his car.

 

She motioned for him to be quiet and they could hear the sound of a car on gravel rolling up. A few moments later, footsteps came from the shop and a voice greeted them.

 

“Gentlemen,” a smooth, familiar voice spoke.

 

“Hiram?” Jughead whispered, astounded, angling his head so he could peer out the passenger window.

 

“Jughead, she whispered, “Get down!”

 

“I trust operations have been running smoothly,” Hiram continued, “Even if the yelp reviewers state otherwise.”

 

“We got the shipments,” the gruff voice of the server betty had earlier responded, “Malachi picked them up at noon.”

 

“Excellent,” they could practically hear the grin in Hirams voice, “Keep up the good work.”

 

Jughead pulled out his phone and zoomed in to take a picture. “Holy shit Betty, they’ve got _huge_ crates of jingle jangle.”

 

She peered over her window, mouth agape as she watched the Ghoulies show Hiram the shipments they had prepared for the following day. She tried to take a picture on her phone-realizing in aghast horror that the flash had been on.

 

All of the men in the alley behind the shop snapped their heads towards Jughead’s car.

 

“What the hell was that?” One of the men grumbled.

 

“We gotta go,” Jughead whispered, quickly shuffling back into his seat and jamming the keys into the ignition.

 

After a few tries they finally turned and just as Betty resituated herself back into her seat, Jughead floored it and they were off on the road-hopefully unseen by Hiram or his… _associates._

 

Adrenaline pumping, he ran the first read light-cautiously peering into his review mirror to make sure they weren’t being followed.

 

“Is your seatbelt on?” She asked with disapproving eyes scanning his body.

 

“That is what you’re worried about right now? _My seatbelt?_ ” His voice was incredulous, “We just watched Hiram Lodge talk about his drug dealings with the Ghoulies and you’re worried about my seatbelt?”

 

“Only takes two seconds to put on,” she said, but she recognized the street he was driving her down.

 

 _Oh._ _He’s taking me home_. A ride home wasn’t something she had asked for nor had they even discussed. And yet there he was, getting her home like it was second nature.

 

Once the car stopped in front of her house, they both exhaled.

 

“That was…” Betty began, “Wow. I can’t believe…”

 

“I know,” Jughead agreed, “I thought the Ghoulies had _something_ to do with this. I didn’t think they were running it-with Hiram Lodge of all people.”

 

“Guess the stakeout wasn’t such a bad idea after all,” She amended, her eyes had a soft look about them-barely illuminated off of the dashboard light.

 

“I should have asked,” he admitted, “It is _your_ paper, after all.”

 

He sounded earnest and Betty felt touched.

 

“Jughead, it’s fine-“

 

“No, I mean it. People should listen to you more,” They locked eyes and stayed like that for a minute. And Betty couldn’t help but feel like something was building here. He always listened to her and respected her feelings-far more than her other friends did. It may sound ridiculous, but it always made her feel a bit more validated.  

 

“Listen, about what I was saying earlier…” Jughead spoke again and suddenly Betty was taken back to that moment, to where Jughead was about to-

 

“Elizabeth!” _Of course._ “Come inside, _now_!”

 

Betty looked up to see her mother standing in the door way, hands folded across her chest.

 

“Duty calls,” he muttered, sparing her a sympathetic glance.

 

She grabbed her things and hurried at the door but not before ducking her head in to say goodbye, “Jughead this…was kind of fun, actually.”

 

“It was,” he smiled.

 

“I missed this. Us, you know?” She continued and she saw the smile on his face waver a bit.

 

“Elizabeth, now!”

 

“I’m coming mom!” She hollered back before reminding Jughead, “I expect that article on my desk before lunch, okay?”

 

Before he could respond, she slammed the door and up the stairs to where her mother was angrily awaiting her.

 

“Tell me I didn’t just watch _my_ daughter get out of that beanie-wearing son of a convict’s car,” Alice demanded.

 

“Sounds like your problem is more with FP than with Jughead mom,” Betty snapped back, “Unless you consider wearing beanies a sin.”

 

\--

 

 That night, Betty found herself laying wide awake in bed. She felt…exhiliarated. More…alive than she had been in a while. She didn’t take pride in knowing what her best friends father was up to, but today she had finally broken out of her dull cycle of normalcy. And she did it with Jughead.

 

Which is when she realized she hadn’t heard from S at all. Worried, she grabbed her phone and opened the tumblr app. A few minutes ago, she had received a message.

 

 

_I think tonight I figured out what my problem is._

_I don’t like who I am anymore._

_-S_

_What do you mean? How did you come to that conclusion?_

_-Elizabeth_

_I saw one of my old friends today_

_-S_

_Really? How did that go?_

_-Elizabeth_

_Better than anticipated._

_Reminded me of how things used to be._

_This whole time I’ve been thinking about how life sucks and how nothing is fair._

_I mean there are some days where I just don’t even try to get out of bed._

_But maybe it’s my fault._

_Maybe I’m the one who changed._

_But maybe I can fix it._

_-S_

 

Laying in bed that night, Betty had a crazy theory. Could _S_ be Jughead?

 

Snippets of their conversation came flooding into her brain and they had matched some of the things she discussed with S. Like how S didn’t exactly have warm feelings towards their father…neither did Jughead.

 

_People who idealized my father were the last people I wanted to be around._

 

And S talked about not really liking their new friends.

 

_“But the problem is I don’t exactly…’fit in’ with the Serpents.”_

 

Because, S claimed, their new friends still thought they were friends with their _old_ friends.

 

_And as for my new friends, they think I’m still friends with my old-friends._

 

_“They still think I’m a Northsider.”_

 

Betty sat up straight, heart pounding. Something about this…just felt _right_. Like it all clicked. It snapped together in one place, better than it did with Trev.

 

It couldn’t be true, could it? It was too outlandish, wasn’t it?

 

But, crazier things had happened.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> sorry for the delay on this update! work has been really crazy and i don't want to rush this story or the updates (cough cough, like i did with A Thousand Times cough cough) but i hope you all enjoyed!
> 
> i changed the amount of chapters this story will have-i'm extending it to 6 (possibly seven max) because it's developed a bit since i originally conceptualized it. and again, i don't want to rush the story!
> 
> i will be away for most of the week which, unfortunately means, no writing. but i should have the 5th chapter up within the next two weeks!
> 
> as always you can find me on tumblr at aswellingstorm.tumblr.com


	5. listen

The next morning, Betty stepped out of her house to find Archie already standing there, waiting for her.

 

Which was kind of rare.

They hadn’t walked to school together since the beginning of the year. He always left earlier than Betty did in hopes of spending more time with Veronica or snagging the music room for practice before homeroom. But, if the lack of noise coming from Archie’s garage was any indication, she suspected he didn’t do much music anymore.

 

But it was also kind of… _inconvenient._

 

“Arch!” She exclaimed with a false brand of cheeriness that evaded the boys notice, “What are you doing here?”

 

He smiled back at her in the boyish kind of way that used to make her stomach flutter. “Hey Betty,I just thought we could walk to school together…you know, for old times sake?”

 

She gave him a tentative glance before straightening her backpack. “Um, sure, that’d be nice.”

 

Except it wasn’t so nice. Not when Betty was desperate to get to school. She didn’t even care so much about the article, she just needed to talk to Jughead. She hadn’t the slightest idea of what she was going to say to him, but she felt a burning need to talk to him. She couldn’t just come out and _ask_ if he was _S_ , but she needed to find out more about him. More about what he’d been up to the past few months.

 

Because not all signs pointed to Jughead. He was driving his mother's car the other day. S couldn’t have done that-because how else would have _S’_ mom skipped town?

 

She needed more evidence before she could confront Jughead. But she had to admit she was pretty worried about Jughead. If he was S and even if he wasn’t.

 

She still hadn’t figured out what it was that ended their friendship. Another reason he might not be S. S said his friendship with his friends fizzled out…whereas the demise of her friendship with Jughead was something big that she had yet to recall.

 

They began walking down their road when she noticed Archie still hadn’t spoken much.

 

Betty cleared her throat. “So, no Veronica this morning?”

 

“She’s busy,” he replied a bit too quickly. “Listen, Betty, I wanted to talk to you about something…”

 

Normally, she would’ve looked to him with concern. Worried something was bothering him. Or she had done something wrong.

 

Instead, she found herself rolling her eyes, “Of course. I should have known there was some ulterior motive to this.”

 

His head snapped to hers and he looked a bit hurt, “What do you mean?”

 

“This,” she gestured to the space between the two of them, “We haven’t walked to school in _ages_ , something we used to do all the time, and now it’s only because you want something from me.”

 

“I don’t want anything from you,” he said, eyes flashing in defense, “I’m just _worried_ about you, Betty.”

 

“Worried about me?” she repeated, feeling as though  that wasn’t the truth. They began drifting away from each other as they walked.

 

“You’ve been acting weird lately,” He confirmed.

 

“Weird,” she scoffed, “and is that by your account, or Veronica’s?”

 

“Betty-”

 

“Because you wouldn’t _know_ how I’ve been acting,” she interjected, “We don’t hang out. We don’t talk. We don’t text. And I get that you’re busy, I am too-“

 

“Busy with what, your _paper_?” he asked. He said it like it was an insult of some sort.

 

And damn, was she tired of people coming after her paper. “Better to be busy with the school paper than some shady fake-internship with Riverdale’s mob boss!” She narrowed her eyes at him.

 

He opened his mouth and shut it quickly, giving her a hard stare before finally speaking, “You know what? Forget it. I saw you hanging out with Jughead yesterday-”

 

“ _That_ is what this is about?” She asked, astonished, “Yeah we were _hanging out._ What, are you jealous? It’s not exactly like we were sharing shakes at Pop’s and forgot to invite you, Archie. If you saw us, you could’ve just said hello-”

 

“I didn’t want to say hi,” Archie corrected, “I don’t want anything to do with him.”

 

Betty stopped in her tracks. She never heard him sound so…cold. His words rang with a tone of finality. Like the mere possibility of even greeting their old friend was too far beneath him. She felt hurt _for_ Jughead.

 

“How could you say that Archie?” Betty wondered, “You guys have been friends…since _forever_. And now you’re just-what? You want nothing to do with him? What the hell happened?”

 

“You know what happened Betty,” Archie spoke passionately, his voice only one step away from yelling, “He pushed _us_ away. He doesn’t deserve to have us as friends.”

 

She opened her mouth to argue, when Archie ranted on.

 

“He kept pushing us away. And I know you’re a loyal person but you have to have some self respect, Betty,” he continued, “He’s a serpent now. He’s not the same Jughead.”

 

“Self respect?” she echoed, “I hang out with Jughead once, and suddenly I have _no_ self respect? What is this, the middle ages?”

 

“I didn’t mean it like that,” He acknowledged, but it was far from being an apology.

 

“No, screw you,” She hated the way her voice cracked, the way she could feel tears brimming in her eyes, “Maybe Jughead joined the serpents. Maybe he changed. But that doesn’t mean we can’t be friends.”

 

“So what,” Archie narrowed his eyes, “You’re on his side now? You’re siding with the Serpents?”

 

“Siding with the Serpents in _what_ Archie?” Betty shook her head, “In-in whatever is going on with Hiram? That’s the only reason you care, isn’t it?  You don’t care that I’m friends with Jughead. You don’t care about Jughead. You don’t care about _me.”_

“That’s not true.”

 

She shook her head, feeling a tear fall down her face as they approached school grounds, “ It is. You only care about yourself and the Lodges.”

 

“Betty-” He reached out to touch her arm, but she stepped away quickly.

 

“Don’t touch me,” she said, unsure of where all of her sudden bravado came from. She jerked her arm back, paying no mind to the peers that were regarding the scene before them with wide eyes. “And you know what? He’s not the only who changed. The _old_ Archie would have never-wouldn’t…act like this. Like some self aborbed douche.”

 

She gave him one last look before nearly breaking out into a run into the main building. But she could still hear him, clear as day, shout after her, “Don’t like you haven’t changed too!”

 

 Inside the building, she wiped her eyes as she beelined for the bathroom. In her peripherals, she noticed Jughead and a few other serpents huddled over something on his phone. Absently, she noted his plan must’ve worked-they all seemed really engaged in what she assumed were pictures from last night. She even noticed someone clapping him on the back with a smile.

 

But his attention was elsewhere. As she walked through the doors, he was looking right at her. He had a smile on his face and looked like he might even dare to say hello to her in the hallway, but it quickly dropped when he noticed her expression.

 

She didn’t have time to talk to him. And she didn’t really want to. He hadn’t done anything wrong, not in the slightest, but she found herself lacking the energy to talk to anyone. Least of all, Veronica-who was staring at her in surprise.

 

“ _Don’t_ ,” Betty hissed, when Veronica made a move to follow her into the bathroom.

 

Only when the  door shut behind her could Betty let herself exhale. She took a deep breath, head still spinning.

 

  _What the hell was that?_

 

It was a question she found herself asking a lot lately.

 

She knew Veronica was tied into this somehow. Maybe it wasn’t even Archie would had seen them together yesterday. Maybe it was her. Or even Hiram had seen them. And instead of talking to her directly about it, Archie was sent to do their bidding.

 

And it all felt so…fake. So political. She felt like she was a pawn in the chess game that had engulfed Riverdale. It made her sick to her stomach. She gripped the edges of the porcelain sick, fighting the urge to force her nails into the abused skin of her palms.

 

Betty was snapped from the injurious train of thought by the sound of the door being flung open. It accompanied by the heavy thud of combat boots on the bathroom tile.

 

The sight of pink hair greeted her. Before Betty could muster a response or even look surprised, Toni asked, “Did he hurt you?”

 

Betty’s voice was choked with unshed emotion, “No.”

 

“Are you alright?” Her voice was softer then Betty imagined it would be. It was oddly comforting.

 

 _I’m okay. I’m fine. Better than ever._ Betty had the urge to serve the expected the answer. Because when someone asks if you’re okay, that’s what you say. _Yes, I’m okay._ But she couldn’t muster the energy to bullshit anyone in that moment. And something about Toni told Betty the other girl wasn’t fishing for a complacent response.

 

“I will be,” it was honest, at the very least.

 

Toni nodded, accepting the response. A beat passed and Toni made a move to leave, sensing Betty’s desire for space. “Hang in there, bubblegum princess.”

 

Unlike a week ago, there was no malice behind the words. Only a soft, joking tone that made Betty smile.

 

It was yet another _what the hell?_ moment. But Betty appreciated it nonetheless.

 

It was the beginning of what would turn out to be a rather strange day.

 

\--

 

Dazedly, Betty walked into the office of _the Blue and Gold_ during lunch. She couldn’t recall much of the morning. It was yet another rainy day, and she spent most of her class time staring out of the window and watching the way the drops chased each other down the window.

 

She was worried she might be overeacting to the whole Archie-Veronica debacle. She felt like she was taking things a bit harder than necessary, but another part of her was screaming _Yes! You’re finally standing up for yourself!_

 

He had gotten her hopes up. He said he was worried about her, but he was really just worried about how her actions would impact himself. Part of her wanted someone to notice that maybe they _should_ be worried about her. Maybe she was hurting from this year too.

 

_Hey. Are you okay? I swear this isn’t creepy, but you seem…I don’t know, out of sorts today. And I heard rumors about this morning. If you don’t want to talk about it, that’s okay._

_-S_

_So you’ve seen me today? Maybe that means I can narrow down my list of people you might be._

_-Elizabeth_

She bit back a smile and tucked her phone into her pocket. At least she had someone…even if they were only online.

 

She looked up to find other people in her room. Her writing staff. And shoot, it was almost publication time-which meant yet another staff meeting.

 

They hadn’t noticed her come in, with the exception of Jughead-who was staring expectantly at her. He had a careful look in his eye, like he was evaluating her.

 

There was a _ding!_ that sounded from Trev’s phone, causing him to break his attention away from whatever he was writing ontop of his textbook. It was a subtle movement, but Betty picked up on it. She furrowed her brows, watching as he shielded his phone away from everyone else’s view in a defensive movement.

 

She didn’t realize she was staring until Ginger said, “Can we like, get started or whatever?”

  
“Um, yeah, that’s right,” Betty responded, distractedly.

 

“Ugh,” Tina whined, “Can’t we just give you our articles and bounce? I have to-”

 

“Yeah I also have to go to football practice,” Moose complained.

 

“What?” Reggie asked, “I thought coach cancelled because of the rain.”

 

Moose elbowed Reggie and Betty rolled her eyes. She didn’t need excuses.

 

“Jesus Christ,” Jughead interjected, clearly irritated, “Can’t you let her talk for _five_ minutes? You realize she’s doing you all a favor, right? Like without her, you’d all be _failing_ English.”

 

“Don’t act so high and mighty,” Reggie scoffed, “You’re here too dude.”

 

Jughead stumbled a bit, “Uh yeah, pft. I meant _all_ of us. She’s helping _all_ of us.”

 

Moose shook his head, but everyone was looking at Betty with attentive eyes. She was almost in disbelief. No one was on their phone or listening to music, they were all actually paying attention to her. They had all fallen silent when Jughead spoke and Betty realized maybe there were _some_ perks to having a gang leader on her writing staff.

 

“Um, right, thank you Jug,” the old nickname slipped out, earning a soft smile, “Anyway, he’s right. The midpoint of the marking period is coming up, so I need to give your teachers feedback on your work. And as I’m sure you remember, they all explained that this is more than just _writing_ for the paper. You need to be including vocab words into your articles. And I need to be seeing some improvement in your writing-you don’t get any credit if you’re still making the same grammatical errors as you did in your first article. Reggie-that means no hanging particaples, okay?”

 

When Moose snickered, Betty added, “And Moose, if I have to tell you _one more time_ that Wikipedia isn’t an appriorate source, you’re not getting extra credit points, okay?” She took a certain satisfaction in the way everyone laughed, feeling herself stand a bit taller, “Next week’s article is everyone’s last chance, okay? I’ll send you the revisions I made to this weeks articles by the end of the weekend so you know what to improve on for your next topics. If I don’t see _something_ , some sign of life from you guys, I’m going to have to report that to your teachers, okay?”

 

When they all noded in rapture Betty finished with, “I’ll take your articles now, if you have them.”

 

They lined up and handed them to her, making hasty exits and grumbling about grammar rules. Trevor was one of the last people to hand her his article, taking a moment to wait until the room was mainly cleared out.

 

“Hey,” he said softly as he walked up to her, article in his hand. “How are you, uh, doing-you know, with everything?”

 

She smiled at him, “I’m fine, Trev, really. Thank you for asking.”

 

He smiled back at her brightly, “I just noticed you seemed kind of out of it this morning. And I know things must be crazy at your house and all-”

 

_I swear this isn’t creepy, but you seem…out of it today._

It was nearly the exact wording S had used. She tilted her head at him, curiously.

 

“I’m sorry-I didn’t mean to pry,” he back tracked quickly, “Obviously, you don’t have to…talk about it, if you don’t want to.”

 

“Pry,” she laughed lightly, “ _That’s_ a good vocab word. You’re not prying at all, Trev. It’s really sweet of you to ask, thank you.”

 

“Well I’ve been learning from the best,” he responded easily, handing her his article.

 

There was a yellow post-it note on top of it. It read _cheer up, buttercup!_ With a small drawing of a smiling, buttercup flower. Betty felt her heart skip a beat, a wide smile spreading across her face.

 

“Sorry, I know it’s corny,” Trev scratched the back of his head, “But I recently started you know, just doing random sketches and stuff again.”

 

“Trev,” she felt her face heating up, “It’s perfect, I’m keeping it forever-just so you know.”

 

He blushed, “I’ll uh, I’ll see you around, Betty.”

 

She smiled after him as he walked away, putting the stack of articles down on the desk.

 

Betty was snapped out of her reverie by Jughead clearing his throat from where he sat on the corner of her desk.

 

“Thought I was going to have to tell you guys to get a room,” he scoffed.

 

_Was that jealousy?_

 

“Anyway,” he continued, “I have my article done.”

“Ooh!” Betty exclaimed, “Let me see!”

 

He went to hand it to her before pulling back, slightly. She suspected he was teasing her, until she noticed the serious look in his eyes.

 

“I…Betty,” He took a deep breath, “I don’t know if this is such a good idea. I can just write a different article.”

 

“What?” she frowned, “But-the stake out, we, and you-with the Serpents! I saw you guys today, hanging out and laughing…like you were finally part of them.”

 

He mumbled something along the lines of not wanting to be apart of them, but before Betty could address that he spoke up again, “You were right, this would put a giant target on your back.”

 

“Is this because of the whole Archie situation?” she asked, arms crossed across her chest.

 

“Kind of, yeah,” he answered truthfully. “Look, it’s your paper and I fully support you doing whatever you want. I just, I don’t want to see you get dragged into this, okay?”

 

“Why does it matter if I do?” Betty wondered, “I mean, what do I have to lose?”

 

“Betty,” he looked concerned, “Come on.”

 

“I mean, whether or not I publish this-Archie will still be an _asshole_ , Veronica will still do whatever suits her in the moment-and the Serpents are counting on you to get this published-”

 

“It’s not about them or-or me,” his voice was just above a whisper. “This is about you. And you looking out for yourself. If you don’t publish it, I won’t hold it against you. I just-I don’t want things to be harder on you than they have to be. Okay?”

 

Truth be told, Betty had felt so fed up with Archie and his accusations that Jughead wasn’t truly her friend that now, when Jughead _tried_ to protect her, it only pissed her off more.

 

It felt like Archie was trying to keep them apart. Veronica, too. She warned Betty to stay away, and then they hang out _one_ time and suddenly Archie comes knocking on her door? Maybe there was something deeper going on.

 

“I don’t care,” she snapped, “I’m publishing it.”

\--

_I don’t think that can help you eliminate any of your suspects. And I don’t mean to twist the knife any deeper, but a lot of people saw what happened today._

_-S_

_Perfect. That’s just so…awesome._

_-Elizabeth_

_That might be able to go down in history as the shortest response you’ve ever sent me. Are you sure you’re okay?_

_-S_

_I’m fine. It’s just-you know what, you’re one step ahead of me. I mean that in a lot of ways. You know who I am. You can see me in the hallways when I’m upset. And I have no idea who you are._

_Not only that, but you’re also one step ahead of me with this whole friend-thing. When we started talking, you told me you knew your ‘friends’ basically sucked. Which totally sucks, don’t get me wrong, but it was like you had already accepted that._

_But now I’m in that phase where I’m only just beginning to realize that they suck._

_And aren’t even my friends at all._

_-Elizabeth_

_I’m sorry if not knowing who I am bothers you. I want to tell you but it’d just be weird. It’d ruin what we have here. It’s like-you know me obviously because our school isn’t that big. But it’s not like I’m just some nameless kid in the hallway you could suddenly be making friendship bracelets with._

_You know me better than that and that’s what makes it weird._

_Does that make any sense?_

_Forget it. I shouldn’t’ve said anything._

_But I’m sorry your friends suck. I’m sure they’re not all bad. If it makes you feel any better, I’ve kinda begun to realize that maybe I wasn’t totally in the right with my old friends._

_I could’ve reached out to them more. I could’ve been more honest. Because, if you can’t be honest with your friends, are you even friends?_

_-S_

Nervously, Betty twisted the ring on her finger. She looked around the hallway, eyes narrowing as she scanned the crowd. Her eyes fell to Trevor.

 

Sweet, nice Trevor. Who sounded eerily close to S. Who had begun running and doodling again after she told S to try revisting old hobbies.  Who’s mother skipped town. Who’s phone went off as soon as she sent S a message. Who was concerned about her this morning and sweetly drew her a cute sticky note. He wasn’t her closest friend, certaintly not inner circle. But he was more than just a face in the crowd-which might make him being S feel a little awkward.

 

All signs pointed to Trev, the more she thought about it. Which meant her original instinct was right.

 

She sighed. It’s not that Trev being S would disappoint her-she wasn’t sure if that was something she _could_ be disappointed by. But it just felt…weird.

 

Hoping S was someone else felt wrong. S had a pretty rough go at life recently and hoping someone else fit the bill of S felt almost like wishing tragedy on someone else.

 

And she’d never wish tragedy on Jughead.

 

The boy who she always packed an extra sandwich for in elementary school because his parents forgot. The only one of her friends to show up to her ballet recital in fifth grade. The boy who would take her to school dances in middle school when Archie bailed in the last second. The one who got dention for a week because he punched Reggie in the face for calling her an ‘uptight bitch’ in ninth grade.

 

She didn’t _want_ S to be Jughead. But it felt like they had a deeper relationship that mirrored the one she had with S.

 

She wasn’t sure what she wanted anymore.

 

\--

_I get it. I understand not wanting to tell me.. I’m just curious and a bit worried, if I’m being honest.. I feel like I could help you more if I knew who you were. I don’t want you to feel alone._

_It sounds like you might be pathcing things up with your old friends. I’m glad. I know that sounds sarcastic, but I promise it’s genuine._

_Maybe they don’t all suck. I don’t know. I just don’t have the energy to be optimistic right now._

_-Elizabeth_

_You don’t have to._

_Y’know, be optimistic all the time._

_You’re allowed to be tired. And sad. And say “the whole fucking world just sucks”!_

_Just, maybe not in front of authority figures._

_Like, don’t announce it at a school assembly in front of Weatherbee._

_-S_

_The thought of that actually…made me laugh. I mean, could you just  imagine his face?_

_And as much as I would love to admit that, I’m afraid it’s not very well suited for someone who runs an advice column._

_-Elizabeth_

_He’d probably crap his pants. But it might make a school assembly actually worth going to._

_Listen, I’m sure you can say it once. It’s therapeutic and I won’t tell._

_-S_

_Therapeutic maybe if I could scream it off a bridge (far away from the prying ears of Weatherbee…)_

_But maybe I’ll save that for  a rainy(er!) day._

_-Elizabeth_

_\--_

 

If Betty had the upper hand in the weird, awkward state her and Veronica were in she had certainly just lost it.

 

For Veronica was currently clutching the latest edition of _The Blue and Gold_ between her freshly manicured, black-polished gel tips. That clearly couldn’t have been done by the nail salon that just opened on the Southside, another one of Hirams ‘fronts’ if Betty was correct in assuming. Her brows were drawn together in distinct anger, eyes slanted. It was clear to Betty that Veronica was waiting for someone in the hallway-she just prayed to God it wasn’t her.

 

Veronica was radiating so much anger that her foot was _tapping_ against the tile for heavensake.

 

And as soon as Betty set foot in that corridor, Veronica was on her heels, grabbing her arm and pulling her into an empty classroom.

_So much for praying._

 

“What the hell, _Betty_?” Veronica more or less spat her name out like a curse.

 

“Veronica-” Betty’s voice was drained, tired. It was probably from lack of sleep as she had been up messaging S the night before. It was the only thing that didn’t make her stomach feel sick.

 

“No. Here’s where I talk and you listen, okay?” Veronica cut in sharply, slamming the newspaper on the desk next to Betty. “This is exactly why I didn’t want you hanging out with Jughead-”

 

“Would you give it a _fucking_ rest already, Veronica?” Betty snapped back, surprising them both with her use of the word _fucking_. She hadn’t planned on interjecting. She was ready to let Veronica rant her heart out. Until she made the mistake of tying this back to Jughead. “I have _news_ for you: if I had known about this on my own, I would’ve written it myself! This has _nothing_ to do with Jughead, got it? But if you want to talk about it-fine! Let’s talk about Jughead. Let’s talk about how you and Archie only _care_ about me if it involves keeping me away from him! And for what? Did you just  not want me hanging out with him because you were worried I’d find out what it feels like to actually have someone care about me? Were you jealous? Worried I’d ditch you for him, like how you always ditch me for Archie? Or drag you along like some pathetic third wheel? Does that sound about right to you?”

 

“No,” Veronica shook her head, using the pads of her fingers to wipe stray tears from her eyes. Betty was taken aback by that-Veronica wasn’t a crier. “ _No._ You don’t get to do that, okay. That’s not fair to me. You don’t get to take this-this _shitty_ situation and make yourself the victim here.”

 

Betty shook her head. That’s not what she was doing…was it?

 

“ For weeks you’ve been pushing me away. You don’t want to hang out, ever. You say you’re always busy doing homework or working on the paper. Which is fine, maybe you just need space. But then you go and you do this?” She gestured to the article, “You _knew_ how I felt about people talking about my dad. And judging me. You knew all of the crap I’ve had thrown at me since the merger. You were _there_ when Ethel dumped her milkshake on me! And then you go and you do _this_? When you knew it would hurt me?”

 

Her bottom lip was quivering and Betty’s stomach swooped low. They were treading dangerously close to waters comprised entirely of Veronica’s tears. Her voice choked on her words and she seemed to be on the verge of full-on sobbing.

 

“I didn’t think about that!” Betty argued. And it was true. She hadn’t really concerened Veronica’s feelings very much. And what she had considered she ignored with an foolhardy belief that Veronica’s feelings were small in comparison to Riverdale’s need for justice.

 

“Well it’s not even true!” Veronica yelled, “It’s not even _true!_ My father would never do that. And I don’t care what you think. I don’t care if you think he had a part in smuggling jingle jangle or teaming up with the Ghoulies. I don’t care if you think he’s up to some evil Shakepearan plot-I only care…I just…I thought you were my _friend_.”

 

Her frame crumbled on the last word, the dam that held back any of her tears had completely broken. She threw her face into her hands, crying loudly as Betty watched in shock.

 

She hadn’t realize she hurt Veronica _that_ badly and now guilty was washing over her in an all-consuming wave.

 

“V, I’m sorry,” Betty said in a gentle tone. And part of her meant that-she did truly regret hurting Veronica. But part of her felt uncomfortable, like she was forcing herself into a mould she didn’t quite fit anymore. “I really didn’t mean-look, you’re one of my best friends. You were from the moment you got moved and I just-I really haven’t even been thinking clearly lately. I would never want or try to hurt you.”

 

Veronica calmed down in a manner so quick it was nearly comical. She angled her face up to Betty, “Do you mean that? Honestly?”

 

“Yes, of course,” Betty placed a hand on her shoulder, “I’m _so_ sorry.”

 

“How am I supposed to believe that?” Veronica asked, shying away from the touch, “It’s like I don’t even know you anymore. You’ve been so…secretive. I mean, I didn’t even _know_ you were doing a stake out.”

 

Betty bit her lip. _Am I really acting that differently?_ She wondered. “I know, I’ve just had a lot going on-”

 

“A lot going on with _what_? I know you’re hiding something B,” Veronica narrowed her eyes, “I can _always_ tell when you’re hiding something. So you can spare me whatever BS you have about your family stressing you out because that’s nothing new. There’s something up with you.”

 

Betty bristled at that. Sure her family had always stressed her out, but was that stress expected to diminish over time just because Veronica was tired of hearing about it?

 

“I want to tell you,” Betty sighed, “But I just can’t. You know I would if I could.”

 

“No, I don’t ‘know’ that,” Veronica picked up the paper and gave it a small wave, “Not after this! Don’t you trust me anymore?”

 

“I do it’s just…” Betty trailed off. She didn’t want to tell Veronica. She promised S that she wouldn’t tell anyone. But maybe it would save their friendship. “It’s not about me. It’s about…this person I’ve been talking to.”

 

“A guy?” Veronica asked, seemingly intrigued.

 

“I think so, but I don’t really know. It’s complicated,” Betty struggled to find the right words, “It’s just-you know, _the Blue and Gold_?”

 

“Yes, I believe I’ve heard of it once or twice Betty,”  Veronica rolled her eyes.

 

“Okay-well, you know the tumblr page? For the Ask Elizabeth column?”

 

“Mhm.”

 

“Well, the thing is…someone messaged me asking for advice.”

 

“Dear god, can you get to the point already?”

 

“Okay fine. They wanted advice, but they needed to remain anonymous. So I’ve been messaging them for a while now and it’s….kind of turned into a mutually benefical thing?” Betty clenched her teeth, nervously waiting for Veronica’s reaction.

 

“Oh dear god,” Veronica ran her hands through her hair. It was a rare thing for her to do. When she was stressed or concerned she'd nervously tug on the pearls that laid around her neck. But running her hands through her normally impeccable hair? That was a move reserved only for peak-worried Veronica. “You’re talking to a stranger. On the internet.”

 

“He’s not a stranger,” Betty argued, “He knows me and about my family.” When Veronica pinched the bridge of her nose with shut eyes Betty continued, “Okay-not like that. It’s just, he’s made it obvious that he goes here. With the way he talks. It’s not like he’s some creepy random guy on the internet.”

 

“You don’t know that Betty!” Veronica pursed her lips.

 

“I know him Veronica! I know it sounds crazy but I just…it’s a gut feeling,” Betty tried her best to sound resolute.

 

“Show me then,” Veronica challenged, “If you’re so certain about this- _whoever_ it is then show me the messages.”

 

“Fine,” Betty responded, easily unlocking her phone and handing it over.

 

Veronica gave her a weary look in return, but checked through the messages for a minute nonetheless. Normally her facial expressions were open and readable to Betty, but this time Betty couldn’t discern what Veronica was thinking.

 

“If you’re interested in figuring out who this is, which I’m assuming you are,” Veronica said after a pause, “Then I totally know.”

 

“What?” Betty asked, astonished. Was it really that obvious? “Who? Who do you think it is?”

 

Veronica responded quickly, in a manner so confident it sounded like it was rehearsed.

 

Betty knew what name she was hoping for.

But it wasn’t the one she got.

 

“Trevor. It has to be,” Veronica asserted. “I have an in on the track team and trust me Betty, anonymous-S is Trevor Brown.”

 

Betty felt her face fall but tried her best to not look disappointed.

 

“What?” Veronica asked, “What’s wrong? You should be happy! I know for a fact he’s totally into you!”

 

Betty wrinkled her nose, “What? What are you talking about?”

 

“Don’t act so coy dear Betty,” Veronica dusted a piece of lint off of Betty’s shoulders, “I’ve seen the way he looks at you. I saw that doodle he made for you today. It’s _so_ obvious he’s head over heels for Riverdale’s favorite editor.”

 

“Trev is just a friend,” Betty argued.

 

“And,” Veronica smiled as if she hadn’t been crying mere moments ago, “I can tell you’re totally into him too! Kev told me you asked about him, and then there was that weird thing you did in the hall the other day?”

 

“That was not, uh-”

 

“Don’t worry, B,” Veronica stood up and linked her arm through Betty’s, guiding them to the door, “Your awkward attempt at flirting _actually_ might’ve worked. And with a little help from me, I can score you that dream date with him after all.”

 

Betty tried to interject, really. But every time she opened her mouth, the words kept failing to come out. Her stomach flipped wildly, but a part of her was happy that at least Veronica was happy. Or at least less upset.

 

It was only after Veronica escorted them to her next period class that a jarring thought crossed Betty’s mind. Veronica was acting like everything was normal, happy to be included in every aspect of Betty’s life now. And Veronica was a very thorough person, leaving no stone left unturned.

 

But, Betty realized, Veronica never said she forgave Betty.

 

And that felt like a small ripple of dread swelling into a tidal wave.

 

\--

 

The tidal wave hit on a Thursday.

 

It all began when Betty had accidentally slept through three of her five alarms. She had never done that before and it left her feeling unsettled and disoriented.

 

Further contributing to this sensation was when Betty noticed her fathers keys and his car was missing in the driveway. He normally didn’t leave for work until 9am.

 

“Mom?” Betty called out, concern making her voice feel small, “Where’s dad?”

 

“Well if I had to guess Elizabeth,” Alice called out from behind the island in the kitchen, “Probably the Holiday Inn.”

 

“What?” Betty asked, “He just left? Why?”

 

“Because he’s a coward, Betty,” Alice snapped placing her glass of orange juice on the kitchen counter with more force than necessary, “Things get a little too rough for him and he walks out that door with his tail between his legs, claiming he just ‘needs a break from it all’.”

 

Her stomach dropped and she felt her palms begin to sweat. It couldn’t be true. “So he just-he left? Without saying goodbye?”

 

“Not to you,” Alice remarked flippantly, “But don’t worry sweetie, you didn’t miss much. Now get to school before you’re late!”

 

 _And what? Pretend that  didn’t just happen?_ Betty blanched at the thought. She didn’t understand. What was too much? How did he just suddenly…leave? Like it was nothing? Was he coming back?

 

She didn’t want to go to school. She didn’t want to see Veronica or Archie or even Kevin. But she didn’t want to stay home either and school felt like the lesser of two rather potent evils.

 

Betty walked through the doors of the school in a daze. People smiled at her or waved, but it didn’t register in her brain. It all felt blurry. It wasn’t until she physically ran into someone that she snapped out of it.

 

That someone being Jughead.

 

“Betts,” He looked at her in concern, “Are you okay?”

 

He reached over and helped her pick up her books, which is when she realized Toni, Fangs and Sweet Pea were behind him.

 

Rather than their usual scowl, Betty was surprised to find mirrored looks of worry on their faces.

 

“Oh,” she said softly, “Sorry about that. Yeah-I’m fine. Totally.”

 

“Are you sure?” Jughead asked before lowering his voice and leaning in so only the two of them could hear, “Do you want to talk?”

 

Betty’s instinct was to tell him that she was fine, once again. To push him away and put  a smile on her face.  But he seemed so sincere and his parent’s always had their fair share of issues. So maybe he’d understand…

 

But then another voice entered the conversation.

 

“Betty!” Trev called out cheerily, “Hey!”

 

“Hi Trev,” She turned to the boy with a small smile, “How are you?”

 

“I’m fine, I’m great,” he answered, and he looked the part. He seemed happy and energetic, if not a little breathless. Betty would’ve normally found it kind of cute but she was sort of in the middle of something… “I actually wanted to, uh, ask you a question.”

 

Betty looked over to Jughead curiously but he was too busy looking at Trev with disdain to notice.

 

“Um, sure Trev,” she tried her best to sound cheery, “What’s up?”

 

“Uh, well-I was actually just wondering-well, I was talking to Veronica today and she told me you might be interested-sorry, I’m rambling,” he apologized with a blush on his face, “But do you want to go see a movie sometime? With me?”

 

Betty stood still, appalled. She had texted Veronica last night and begged her not to meddle. Yet here were the clear results of her meddling, staring Betty right in the face with hopeful eyes.

 

And she didn’t know what to say. If Trev really was S, she should say yes. But she couldn’t be further from being in the mood to go on a date. But it’d also be rude to say no…

 

In both a strike of great luck and grave misfortune, Betty was bailed out from having to answer that question by Weatherbee’s voice booming over the intercom.

 

“Elizabeth Cooper and Jughead Jones report to the principal's office **immediately** , Elizabeth Cooper and Jughead Jones to the principal's office.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> hello! first off, i would like to say that i have read everyones comments and nearly combusted with the joy they gave me, but i'm still trying to catch up on everything i missed in the past week that i haven't gotten around to responding just yet :( i do apologize for the wait on this chapter, but i did make it a bit longer to try to make up for it! i'm not *~in love~* with how this chapter turned out but regardless...we've only got one chapter left and i'm so excited to share it with you guys! i've really enjoyed writing this story and reading everyones comments, so thank you for all of the continued support <3
> 
> as always you can find me on tumblr at aswellingstorm.tumblr.com


	6. trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> full disclosure: i planned on only writing one more chapter, but it got too long so i'm splitting it in half!

Betty couldn’t really hear anything that was coming out of principle Weatherbee’s mouth. She was staring directly at him, mouth agape, fingers tingling with the sensation of pins and needles. Absently, she could hear a shrill, white noise in her ear.

 

She had mentally checked out of the conversation about ten seconds prior, when he announced to both Betty and Jughead that the _Blue and Gold_ would be revoked from print and canceled as an extracurricular.

 

Weatherbee was pulling the plug. The _Blue and Gold_ was banned. And, allegedly, that was an act done out of whatever lingering mercy resided in Hiram Lodge’s heart. She had been informed of such by the man himself, who stood menacingly over Weatherbee’s shoulder. Grinning like a cat that had swallowed not one, but two canaries.

 

Because Betty and Jughead were wrong. It wasn’t jingle jangle that was being delivered to _Jungle Juice_. It was a crate of protein powder. Which, Hiram stated, rendered Jughead’s article as nothing more than libel. And Hiram had no qualms about suing Riverdale High over damaging his reputation.

 

But, in exchange for letting the unhappy incident go, the _Blue and Gold_ had to go along with it.

 

And Betty felt like she couldn’t breathe.

 

There was talk of after school detention for the two of them, but Betty tuned out of the conversation. The callous part of her mind of her mind noted that _this_ hurt more than anything. Having the _Blue and Gold_ taken away from her made her father leaving feel like _nothing_. Something about her dad felt more open-ended, it was temporary. But the cancellation, as Weatherbee dictated, was finite.

 

Her father was, of course, her father. The man who changed her diapers, drove her home from ballet class, bought her first detective book and taught her how to fix cars. But when things went wrong at home, she had turned to the _Blue and Gold_. It felt like her brainchild. It gave her an escape. It was something she could pour her heart and soul into. It gave her purpose and a sense of belonging. And, although she had only been running it for a few months, she wasn’t sure who she was without the paper.

 

Archie was the all-American jock. Veronica was the elite, rich girl. Kevin was the town gossip. Cheryl was the HBIC. Jughead had the Serpents. Betty’s place in the realm of all things high school was the school reporter.

 

But now, what did Betty have?

 

Nothing.

 

“You two are dismissed,” Weatherbee concluded, “Your first period teachers don’t need a note; they know where you were.”

 

Numbly, Betty grabbed her bags and began to head out the doo, right behind Jughead when Hiram stopped her.

 

“Betty,” his voice was silky smooth and much lighter without Jughead in the room, “Can we have a word?”

 

 She froze in her tracks. Something about his tone made her skin crawl and her eyes narrow in distaste.

 

Cautiously, she stepped back into the doorway. She could feel Weatherbee’s eyes burning holes into her skin.

 

“Betty Cooper,” he nodded at her, while Weatherbee kept his eyes downcast, “Riverdale High’s best and brightest, so it seems. Although I must admit, I wish you’d rub off a bit more on my daughter. I think she spends a bit too much of her time with that Archie fellow, wouldn’t you agree?”

 

He laughed at that. As if he didn’t also have Archie right under his thumb.

 

After seeing no reaction from Betty, Hiram forwent the small talk, “I’m a reasonable man, Betty, surely you know that. You understand I can’t exactly have the people of this town thinking I’m involved in-what was it again? Drugs? Gangs? I mean, just think of the heart attack my parole officer would have.”

 

Betty bit the inside of her lip. Hearing him speak made her nauseous. She was already handed her punishment, being forced to stand there and listen to him gloat felt like salt on an open wound.

 

“You know what I think happened? I think _you_ made a mistake. I mean you’re young, you’re carefree, you’re just a kid,” he grinned again and Betty wouldn’t have been surprised if he started quoting ke$ha lyrics just in an attempt to relate to her. “I’ve made plenty of mistakes. You don’t get to where I am without a misstep or two.”

 

She still wasn’t sure what he was hinting at. All she knew was that it didn’t _feel_ like a mistake at the time. It still didn’t feel like one. She couldn’t believe they were _wrong_.

 

“I don’t want to punish you unfairly for _one_ mistake,” he stressed the word, emphasizing that it better remain that way. _One_ mistake. “You have a glowing academic record and no history of behavioral misconduct ever since _pre-school._ We wouldn’t want to ruin that now, would we? Not with college applications on the horizon?”

 

Weatherbee looked at her with weary and tired eyes.

 

“So Walter and I have decided that we’re willing to spare you the the weeks worth of afternoon detention and keep your record clean, as they say, so long as we see you…let’s say, realigning yourself with the right kind of people?” Hiram proposed and he was looking at Betty like he was doing her a favor. Instead, she just felt like a six course meal to a cat that viewed the canaries as mere appetizers.

 

“I don’t understand,” she spoke, voice small, “The right ‘kind of people’? What does that mean?”

 

Weatherbee and Hiram exchanged meaningful looks before Weatherbee spoke, “I’m sure you know the kind of people Mr. Jones chooses to associate with.”

 

“So what,” Betty said, but her words felt weak. They were montone; there was no fire behind them. It was like they fell out of her mouth and landed lamely on the floor in front of her. “I publish one incorrect article with Jughead’s name slapped on it and suddenly I’m a delinquent?”

 

“That’s not-”

  
“I’d rather have the week of detention,” she interrupted. She knew she was only screwing herself. But-who cares? If she thought she had nothing to lose before, it was nothing compared to this. To the feeling of truly knowing there was nothing that hadn’t already been taken away from her. “I revived that paper-Mr. Lodge, in case you didn’t know. I’ve written countless articles. Not only that, but I actually got the school to read it-and care about it! I used it to tutor other students so they didn’t fail _college prep level English_ and now? That’s it, then? Everything I put into the paper is, what irrelevant? It just doesn’t matter? Because of _one_ article? No warning-nothing? That’s not-this isn’t _fair._ ”

 

Tears were streaming down her face and she didn’t even notice until  she felt them slide off of her chin. It made her feel embarrassed, to be reduced to tears in front of two grown men.

 

“It’d be wise of you to watch your tone,” Weatherbee cautioned.

 

“It’s fine Walter, I’ve got this,” Hiram cleared his throat, “Maybe you’re right Betty, perhaps it’s not fair.” In his pause, he placed two hands on the pack of Weatherbee’s chair and leaned in. He made eye contact with her and it felt as though he slipped back into his cold, calculating persona. “So let this be a valuable lesson to you then; If you’re looking for trouble, don’t be surprised when you find it.”

 

\--

 

“Betty,” Jughead called out. He had been leaning against the brick wall that encpsuled the administrative offices. No doubt overhearing everything Hiram had said

 

But she didn’t stop walking when he called her name. She had a headache and she was irritated by the fact he might see her cry. Without much grace, she tugged her hair loose from her ponytail and kept her gaze straight

 

He jogged to keep up with her, “Betty, can you wait just a second?”

 

Betty still wouldn’t look at him but responded, “What, Jughead? What do you want?”

 

He placed a hand on her shoulder, “I am so, so sorry-”

 

“For what?” She halted, mid-stride.  “You didn’t do anything. In fact, you told me _not_ to publish it. And I didn’t listen, did I? So it’s my fault, not yours. Okay?

 

“Betty,” He spoke softly and she could feel the comforting way his thumb circled on her shoulder. But it was just _too much_ right now, “I never should have written it in the first place, okay? I’m going to talk to Weatherbee and I-I don’t know. I’ll even try to pleade and beg Hiram for forgiveness, somehow-”

 

“Jughead,” Betty took a step back, instantly missing his touch. “It’s over, it’s done. There’s…there’s nothing we can do so…just-just, stop, okay? I can’t-I _really_ can’t talk about this right now. Please.”

 

His hand fell limply by his side.  Her vision was clouded with tears, but she could still discern the look of hurt that flashed across his face.

 

“Okay I…I won’t bother you again,” Jughead promised solemnly.

 

Something about it felt…strange. Almost eerie and too permanent.

 

\--

 

“Is it true, Elizabeth?” Her mom asked, arms crossed front of her chest. Her eyes were blazing with fury and her voice was thin.

 

Betty should’ve known the shit storm wouldn’t stop when she returned home.

 

“Have  you been talking to some _stranger_ on the internet?” Alice continued, casting a sideways glance to the third party in the room.

 

The aforementioned third party cleared her throat, “I should really be going. This sounds like a private matter.” Veronica stood up gracefully, settling her purse into the crook of her elbow.

  
There was a cup of tea next to where she had sat. Betty wondered just how long ago Veronica had to cut out of school to beat Betty to her own house. How much forethought to Veronica put into the act of tattling?

 

Veronica brushed her shoulder as she walked out of the Cooper house.

 

“Well?” Alice asked, impatiently, “Did you spill all of our dirty secrets to your little internet friend?”

 

“I don’t know what _she_ told you,” Betty said defensively, “But they were only asking for advice.”

 

“I’ll be the judge of that,” Alice tsked, “Give me your phone.”

 

There was a small, dwindling part of her that wanted to fight-to say no. wanted to say no. She wanted to scream at her mother in refusal. She wanted to tell her mother everything. How she wasn’t just some writer for the _Blue and Gold_. She was the editor, the one who brought it back to life. The person who used it not only to tutor students, but to allow other students to anonymously ask for help.

 

Because her own mother didn’t know those things. She didn’t know what Betty was up to. Alice didn’t have time to care, and maybe that wasn’t entirely her fault. She was practically raising two twins as her own and it was more clear now than ever before that Hal wasn’t interested in helping.

 

So naturally, Betty fell to the wayside and only blipped on Alice’s radar when shit was hitting the fan.. The only thing that mattered were keeping perfect grades and having well rounded circulars.  It didn’t matter how Betty felt. It didn’t even matter what Betty did as long as Alice didn’t have to deal with the consequences.

 

Alice was dealing with so many other things; running a paper of her own, taking care of babies, trying to convince Polly to go back to school, her relationship with husband…there was no room for Betty on that list.

 

Betty was realizing that much now.

 

And so, she took the path of least resistance. She took her phone out of her pocket, quickly swiping her thumb across the home button to unlock it. With a quick move of her fingers, she deleted the tumblr app entirely.

 

Wordlessly, she placed it on the counter. It felt like giving up, but Betty had a bigger fight to attend to.

 

“I mean honestly Betty,” Alice exhaled but her voice held the same sharp tone, “I was counting on you to have your head on straight.”

 

“Check the student portal,” Betty said dully, “Check my grades. Everything is perfect. Just how you want it.”

 

_Everything is perfect._

 

Betty turned on her heel and sprinted for the door before her mother could attempt to stop her.

 

“Betty!” her mother called, “Where do you think you’re going?”

 

To her credit, Veronica was pretty slick.. She had nearly made it to Archie’s house before she noticed Betty hot on her trails.

 

Betty grabbed her former best friend by the arm, “What the hell, Veronica?”

 

Veronica looked surprised, but recovered quickly. “I had to tell her, Betty.”

 

“No,” Betty shook her head, “You didn’t. You did it to get back at me, didn’t you?”

 

“Back at you? For what? The paper?” Veronica rolled her eyes, “Don’t be _ridiculous_. I was just worried about you.”

 

“No, I don’t buy that,” Betty shook her head. “So why don’t _you_ cut the BS for a change?”

 

“Betty. You were talking to a stranger. On the internet.” Veronica repeated. But she didn’t have the usual strength behind her voice. She was wavering, and that was all Betty needed to know that she was right.

 

“So what? It wasn’t enough that your dad pulled the plug on my paper? You had to take it one step further? God, Veronica I knew you were a bitch at your old school but I didn’t think you could be this _cruel_ ,” Betty felt disgusted. Truly, gut-wrenchingly disgusted. She didn’t even want to look at Veronica.

 

“My father did what?” Veronica asked. She looked genuinely surprised. Betty had seen enough of Veronica’s acting lately to know that this wasn’t it.

 

“He came in this morning.” Betty clarified, “And said that either the newspaper gets suspended or he presses charges against the school for defamation of character.”

 

“I-what?” Veronica sputtered, “He didn’t tell me that. Betty, you have to believe me-I had no idea.”

 

“Would it have changed anything if you knew?” Betty asked callously, “Just be happy you got your payback. You got the last blow, and that’s all that matters, right?”

 

“I didn’t want to hurt you,” Veronica denied, swallowing thickly.

 

“Maybe not ‘hurt me’, but that’s the end result, isn’t it?” Betty shook her head, “You took away the _one_ person who actually understood me!”

 

“I can’t understand you or, or even _know_ what you’re going through if you don’t let me in,” Veronica argued.

 

“Oh please,” Betty actually snorted at that, “You don’t _want_ to be let all the way in. Trust me on that.”

 

“What is that supposed to mean?” Veronica wondered.

 

“Because you don’t _actually_ care!” Betty yelled. She felt a bit hysterical. She actually _laughed_. “You don’t _care_ about me. You only care about yourself. If you cared about me, you’d know my father _left_ today. He just walked right out. I don’t know where he is-or if he’s even coming back.”

 

“Betty, what?” Veronic’s gaze snapped to the front door, as if Hal would be there with a big smile and a t-shirt that read _Perfect Dad !10/ 10! Would never walk out on his family!_

“Yep. Believe it or not. High school sweethearts Alice and Hal can’t make a marriage work,” Betty commented bitterly, “They’ve been fighting every day. Every _damn_ day. And these walls are thin Veronica-I’m stuck listening to everything. I hear my parents fight. I heard my mom and my sister fight. I hear babies crying. I can’t escape it.”

 

“Wait-hold up. Pause-” Veronica was still trying to wrap her brain around Hal.

 

“No. You don’t get to play _catch up_ now Veronica,” Betty spat out, “This has been happening for weeks. And if you actually cared, maybe you would’ve noticed. But you’re just like Archie. You don’t care about what happens to me. You care about how what I do _affects you_.”

 

“That’s not true,” Veronica’s voice was paper thin, and Betty could see right through it.

 

“You sent Trev over to me this morning, didn’t you?” Betty put the pieces together, “Because you saw me talking to Jughead.” Veronica didn’t deny it. “You convinced him to ask me out, right in front of Jughead. I-just, I-you. You’re unbelievable.  I bet you don’t even think he’s _S_ , do you?”

 

Veronica looked at the ground. She didn’t need to say anything-they both knew well enough.

 

“You just want to keep Jughead and I away from each other,” She surmised. “Why?”

 

Veronica looked at the ground until Betty repeated with more anger, “ _Why?_ ”.

 

“Because!” Veronica exclaimed, “Like it or not Betty, he’s going down a darker path. _You_ can’t save him from that! You’ll just be dragged into it. Look at what happened today.”

 

“He wasn’t always a Serpent!” Betty argued. “He wasn’t when you got here! So your issue can’t with him being in a gang Veronica.”

 

There was a pause. Like Veronica was determining if she could outrun Betty in her heels.

 

After a beat she confessed, “It started at the Drive-In. He figured out my dad bought it from prison.”

 

The Twilight Drive In. Where Jughead worked.

 

“And he’s always hated me for it,” Veronica continued.

 

“So what? You figured if I was friends with him, I’d hate you too?” Betty guessed. Veronica averted her gaze once again. There was something more there. Something unspoken. Another reason.

 

“Look at what you two did when you worked together!” Veronica pointed out, “You tried to destroy my family’s name! And you admitted it yourself, you didn’t even think about me. Or the consequences.”

 

Valid point.

 

“So that’s why you kept us apart?” Betty wondered, “Because you were worried that, what? Together we’d figure out the _truth_ behind whatever your father’s doing?”

 

“Not so much worried about that anymore. Since, like I said, you two were _wrong_ ,” Veronica snapped.

 

But it was true. And it all made sense.

 

It was almost laughable. How a grown man and his mob-like family were afraid of two teenagers in high school.

 

But maybe they had a reason to be. Betty wasn’t so convinced that it was protein powder in those crates after all.

 

“You know, I used to cling to the belief that we are _not_ our families,” Betty said, “We didn’t have to harbor their-their grudges and their fueds.  I used to believe that we were more than their bad decisions and questionable reputations. That’s how I used to defend you. To _everyone_ , to my parents, to _Jughead_. I would’ve always defended you. But now I see the truth. You’re not ‘just like your father’. You _are_ your father.”

 

And with that, Betty turned on her heel and marched back into her house, to where her mother was waiting with the terms of her house arrest.

\--

Part of the reason why Betty didn’t mind giving up her phone too terribly was because she knew it wasn’t her end-all be-all.

 

Because she still had a laptop in her room. Where her mother had banished her indefintiley.

 

There was only one person Betty needed to talk to.

 

And if she had any shred of luck from this shitty day, S might be online right now.

 

Much to her disappointment, there were no new messages waiting for her. She frowned when she noticed there was no green dot next to his name, either.  Still clinging onto hope, she decided to try refreshing the page. Sometimes tumblr didn’t load messages properly-

 

That’s when she noticed his url changed.

 

What had once was ‘anonymous-S’ now read: anonymous-Sdeactivated040918

 

Time froze.

 

 _Deactivated_.

 

Her heart stopped.

 

_Deactivated._

 

Her eyes rapidly re-read the url again and again.

And again.

Hoping it would change.

 

_No. No. No. No. No._

 

She clicked on the username. It brought her to a navy background with the following message:

 

“There's nothing here. Whatever you were looking for doesn't currently exist at this address. Unless you were looking for this error page, in which case: Congrats! You totally found it.”

 

_There’s nothing here._

 

It was over. S was gone. Really gone.

 

She had no friends. No paper. No father. And now, the final nail in the coffin: No _S_.

 

She shut her laptop with a slam. She got up and started pacing. Back and forth. One end of the room to the other. Back and forth.

 

_Gone._

In the span of a day, she lost everything.

  

She pushed everything off of her desk. Laptop, folders, notebooks, pens-everything. Scattered across her room like a hurricane. It was all useless to her anyway.

 

She felt herself sink to the floor in the middle of the mess, like the eye of the storm.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> so for real this time: only one more chapter left!  
> this is the first and last time i will ever try to guarantee the amount of chapters a fic will have
> 
> as always you can find me at aswellingstorm.tumblr.com!


	7. found

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> tw for mentions of abuse and thoughts of suicide

Over the course of one day the entire world had changed, and that was all Betty felt certain of anymore.

 

Waking up the next morning was cruel. When she first woke up, the vestiges of sleep were still leaving her body and she felt a sweet sense of unknowing. A weird kind of ease as she blearily opened her eyes. It wasn’t until she brought a tentative finger to her puffy eyes did she remember what she had been so upset about in the first place.

 

She shuffled into a sitting up position, stomach swooping low with dread, as her eyes surveyed the room. It was still a mess and recalling her meltdown made her feel not only guilty but a bit shameful.

 

Her gaze landed on her laptop, laying innocently in the mess. It struck her as funny-how the world was still at her fingertips when she was behind the screen, she could still use the internet, write reports, research colleges but…it felt useless to her now. She felt like the machine was broken and it couldn’t perform its basic function anymore.

 

Her eyes were too worn out to shed anymore tears, but she was helpless to the sadness that overcame her.

 

Her life may have been spiraling out of control. She may have had issues with her mother and father, with Polly and Jason, with her friends…but she had gotten used to having someone on the other end…when she felt like everything was too much, she had someone there to ground her, to help her focus. She had someone on the other side of the line, occasionally giving her a gentle tug to remind her that they were still around. That she would still be okay.

 

But now that line was gone.

 

\--

The sky was looking overcast on her way to school. She gripped an umbrella in her right hand, knowing that the rain was bound to come later that day.

 

Her hair was falling in loose waves at her shoulders. Betty had tried to put it in a ponytail that morning but her head screamed in protest-aching from the tears she shed the previously night. And she really didn’t feel like fighting through it nor did she have the energy to grab some Advil. It just felt easier this way.

 

Out of her peripheral vision, she noticed Archie pull up beside her in his car that had been gifted from Hiram himself. He asked her if she wanted a ride, but she found she didn’t have the energy to answer him. She didn’t even have the energy to turn her head and look in his direction. She just kept walking forward, with her gaze fixed straight ahead. She heard him bite out a “ _fine, whatever”_ and vaguely hoped the rain would flood his roofless car.

 

When she did make it to school, the lights felt far too bright. Her eyes squinted to adjust as she made her way to her locker. There was a crowd of Serpents looking at her as she walked past and she looked back at them only to see if Jughead was among the clique. He was in the middle of them, with the others standing around him in a semi-circle. He blended right in, Betty noticed, just like he had wanted.

 

She broke her gaze on Jughead and turned her attention to her locker combination.

 

Kevin walked up to her with a bright smile, “Betty! How are you-”

 

“Let’s make this quick Kevin,” Betty interrupted, voice monotone. Her worn eyes met his and she hoped she was conveying how tired she was of this _game_. She knew what he walked over to her for. For gossip, the drama. The latest and greatest. “I know you’re just going to report this back to Veronica and the whole school so here it is: I’m tired. I’m miserable. My mom has me on indefinite house arrest. My dad still hasn’t come home. And to top it all off, the _stranger_ that I was talking to on the internet? The one that everyone has such a problem with? He deleted his account. So, now I really have _no_ one. You can tell Veronica she got exactly wanted, okay? That juicy enough for you?”

 

To her surprise, Kevin looked a bit taken aback. Kind of _really_ hurt, actually. Fairly offended, honestly.

 

“Wow… _No_ one? Really? I mean…I…I heard bits and pieces of what happened, “he confessed, clutching his books tightly, “And I wanted to see if you were okay. Since you know, we _were_ pretty close until Veronica moved here and you became obsessed with her. And I know you bumped me down to nothing more than the part-time sidekick and fulltime source of gossip, but I did still care about you-”

 

She didn’t know it was possible to feel worse than she already had. “Kevin-”

 

“But-message received. Loud and clear.” He spared her one final hurt look before brushing past her, his shoulder pushing her back slightly.

 

Her gaze remained in the place where he had just been standing. She inhaled deeply, allowing herself to close her eyes for just a moment. Shutting them felt like a warm blanket of relief. One that slowly dissipated when she lifted her heavy lids to see Jughead glancing at her from down the hall. His lips were pressed into a thin line and he looked like how Betty felt. Exhausted. Sick. Hopeless.

 

He seemed worried, like he wanted to say or do something. But he was refraining. _Maybe he’s afraid to talk to me_ , she thought to herself. After her not-so-little melt down the previous day, she wouldn’t have been surprised.

 

He _did_ say he would leave her alone. At the time, she had thought he meant in that particular moment. But now she was worried he had taken it as some sort of sacred oath he was destined to carry out for the rest of his life.

 

She was distracted from her train of thought when the first period bell rang and Principle Weatherbee’s voice rang out across the loudspeaker.

 

**_Betty Cooper to the Principles office. Betty Cooper to the Principles office._ **

 

 _Not again_ , she groaned internally. Her stomach clenched with the typical kind of dread that came with the prospect of speaking directly to an authority figure. But another part of her wondered what else could _possibly_ go wrong.

 

She wanted to send a questioning stare to Jughead, but he had already begun walking away from her. His profile slowly mixing into the shuffle of students heading to first period.

 

\--

“Ms. Cooper,” Weatherbee acknowledged her a long face. He looked a bit emotionally beat down. There were bags under his eyes and he rubbed his forehead sleepily. “The door, please.”

 

He lifted a hand in gesture, and she responded by quickly shutting it behind her. Her nerves grew tenfold. Weatherbee was big on his “open door policy”. He’d leave the entryway wide open, even when reprimanding students about private matters.

 

The closed door was foreboding, mocking Betty as she stood behind one of the leather seats in front of his desk. Almost as if to say, _you didn’t think things could get any worse? Challenge accepted._

“I don’t wish to keep you from your first period class for the second day in a row, Betty,” Weatherbee droned. He was already making out a hall pass for her to present to her teacher. “So I’ll keep this short-you had a blog you ran with the school paper, correct?”

 

Betty paled. _He probably wants the log on info so he can delete it all._ Her hands twitched nervously at her sides. She didn’t want him to have access to her unanswered asks, her previous advice pieces, and most importantly, her numerous and personal conversations with S.

 

“Um,” she supplied in lieu of a direct answer.

“And it has a large student following, does it not?” He asked.

 

“I-I guess. I mean-not too large or anything-”

 

He blinked up at her with his arms folded across his chest, “And, hypothetically, if you were to turn that advice blog into a non-Riverdale High affiliated blog that _happens_ to release information regarding local happenings, it would reach the same audience as something like the _Blue and_ Gold used to, would it not?”

 

She recoiled, brows furrowing in confusion. _Change the blog_? That wasn’t something she had considered. “I don’t…I don’t understand what you’re asking me.”

 

“I’m afraid I’m not asking you anything. All I mean to say is that a blog of such nature would _not_ be considered to be directly tied to our school and therefore not subject to any such scrutiny.” He stated before handing her the hall pass.

 

 _Holy shit_.

 

“That’s a great idea,” she said, breathlessly. She gripped one of the chairs excitedly. A smile had worked its way across her face for what felt like the first time in an eternity. Finally, a shred of good news. Of hope.

 

“It’s not an idea, Ms. Cooper. And it’s certainly not mine,” he drawled, “I’m merely informing you of your rights as a student at Riverdale High.”

 

She steamrolled over what he was trying to tell her with a question, “Does this mean I can still have my writing staff? As an extra-credit program?”

 

“Teachers are to always encourage students to be involved with applying materials outside of the classroom,” he deadpanned, “But it’d be wise to double check with them first.”

 

She nearly jumped for joy. _Nearly_ might actually be a lie-she certainly had a fair bit of pep in her step when she giddily took the hall pass off of the desk.

 

“Thank you so much Mr. Weatherbee! Really, this means so much-” She began to thank him earnestly when he held up a hand to silence her.

 

“I have nothing to do with this,” he reminded her in a blanket statement. She knew what he was hinting at-that if this were to somehow backfire a certain Mr. Lodge could never know where she drew the inspiration from. “Now please kindly tell your friends to stop circling my house at three am.”

 

Betty felt a new wave of confusion roll over her, “What? My friends?”

 

“Please, I don’t need to hear excuses right now,” he sighed, “I just need more than two hours of sleep.”

 

“I don’t understand,” she frowned.

 

“Your miscreant friends-the ones that you were so willing to fall on your sword for, were rather unhappy about the cancellation of your paper,” he snapped, irritated, “And decided to let me know that over several hours of motorcycle revving outside of my house. Now get out of my office before I decide to give them all detention.”

 

Elated, surprised, happy yet confused-Betty all but ran out of Weatherbee’s office.

 

\--

 

She was still reeling from the conversation a few hours later.

 

Because it was ingenious. A mere rebranding of the newspaper. Except it wouldn’t be a newspaper. It’d be a harmless, little blog. That 70% of the school already followed. But it wouldn’t be _affiliated_ with the school at all.

 

 _Ask-elizabeth.tumblr.com_ would now be _theblogofriverdale.tumblr.com._ A pretty seamless, transition, really.

 

And after some minor convincing, almost all of the teachers had agreed that if their students wrote for the blog, they’d still receive extra credit. Which meant her writing staff was as secure as ever before.

 

There was one final teacher she needed to speak with it about, Mrs. Higginbotham. She was the last one to send a student to the office of the _Blue and Gold_ -Jughead.

 

After Betty finished her pitch, she clasped her hands together nervously. She was anxious about asking Mrs. Higginbotham, more so than asking the other teachers. If she refused, that meant Jughead could go back to being a fading echo in Betty’s life.

 

However, the older woman shut down her fears with an ecstatic smile.

 

“That is a _wonderful_ idea Betty,” the teacher responded with a smile, “I have to say, I’m impressed. I can’t believe they ever shut it down on you in the first place.”

 

Betty smiled gratefully, “Thank you, Mrs. Higginbotham.”

 

“And truth be told, I wish I had known I could send students to you. I’m sure I could double your staff,” the woman rolled her eyes, “I’ve been trying my best to get through to these kids.”

 

“Wait,” Betty paused, confused, “You didn’t know?”

 

“No,” she shook her head sadly, “There’s very poor communication in the English department. As ironic as that may sound.”

 

“But-you, I-what?” Betty sputtered but tried her best to sound polite, “I’m so sorry-maybe I’m mistaken. I thought you had Jughead Jones in your class? And you sent him to me because he was failing. Maybe I got the teachers mixed up-”

 

Mrs. Higginbotham cut her off with a laugh. “Oh no dear, you’re very much correct. Jughead _is_ indeed in my class. But him? _Failing_? He’s the best student I have.”

 

 _But…he...had a note?_ Betty then realized how easily such a note could be forged. She had no way of knowing Mrs. Higginbotham’s _actual_ signature.

 

But why would he lie about joining? He didn’t _need_ to be failing to join the paper.

 

 _Unless_ …

 

Her mind flashed back to the day he had joined. It was the same day she advised _S_ to pick up an old hobby.

 

She knew Jughead wouldn’t lie without reason. She also knew that _S_ was incredibly wary of anyone figuring out his identity. Admittingly, if Jughead had attempted to join the paper of his own free will, it would’ve sent out a red flag to Betty. She’d wonder why the sudden change, what made him _want_ to not only write again-but also interact with her again? Eventually, she would come to the conclusion.

 

All of the pieces of the puzzle began to flow into place seamlessly. The way Jughead spoke with disdain about his father matched _S_ own feelings. How _S_ said he didn’t really have a family, just people who look out for him-who else could it be but the Serpents?

 

And it was probably so obvious to a third party, such as Veronica. Who, upon reading the messages, attempted to shove Betty in the opposite direction and insist it was Trev.

 

All along, Betty had an inkling in her bones-one that proved to be true. Somehow it both shocked her and didn’t surprise her much at all…

 

Wholeheartedly and unwaveringly she knew:

 

Jughead Jones was _S._

\--

 

This revelation came with a million questions. Burning inquires that she couldn’t fathom the answers to. Her mind felt like it was going a mile a minute: _why couldn’t he just talk to me in person? Why go through all of these steps to protect his identity from me? If he trusted me enough to talk to me online, what difference would it have made if it was in person?_

She became hyper aware of the fact that she and Archie must’ve been _the_ friends he was talking about as S. Which rattled her brain, because S had implied that the friendship had ended after lot of fizzling that led up to some event that convinced him they were no longer his friends. Whereas Jughead told her it was something she had forgotten.

 

 _Something like a birthday?_ Betty had wondered but quickly dismissed the thought. She never forgot his birthday, despite how desperately he wanted everyone to. She never forgot _anything_. But here she had apparently forgotten something so major that it inspired all of… _this_ to happen. Whatever it was, strained their friendship to the point where Jughead would leave without saying goodbye. Look a different way when they bumped into each other in the hallway. Create an online persona just to talk to her.

 

In the middle of the cafeteria was the answer to all of her questions. He sat in one of the end seats, head leaning into his hand as the rest of the group chatted about something.

 

Ordinarily, she would’ve kept her wits about her and recognized that storming up to a gang wasn’t far from being an executable idea. However, she needed answers-and she needed them in that very moment.

 

And so Betty marched over to their table in solitude. Her pale pink sweater was a stark contrast to the mix of worn-leather jackets and bright serpent patches. Every soul at the table stopped mid-conversation to look at her in awe-no one had the gumption to walk up to their table like that before.

 

“We need to talk,” she spoke firmly, eyes trained solely on Jughead.

 

A chorus of _‘Oohs_ ’ broke out in the crowd with a snickering Sweet Pea loudly boasting, “ _Someone_ ’s in trouble with his girlfriend!”

 

Betty ignored him in favor of tugging Jughead up and all-but hauling him out of the cafeteria. As they walked away, she could see a few of them jerk instinctively in a move that was closer to defense than offense. Like they wanted to protect Jughead, before they could realize she was no threat.

 

She noticed the rest of the cafeteria had fallen silent at the exchange as well. It was like they were waiting on baited breath for something to happen. Archie and Veronica were staring at the pair and Betty made sure to lock eyes with her former friends.

 

She was hoping to convey a lot in their stare down. Something along the lines of:

 

_Ha._

_You thought I couldn’t figure it out, didn’t you?_

_You were wrong._

 

It was mainly confrontational, perhaps a bit too much. But Betty knew that Veronica had known who _S_ was, and this was just another strand in the Lodge’s great web of lies. An even greater attempt to keep Betty and Jughead apart.

 

“So I guess Weatherbee told you,” Jughead muttered when they reached an empty chemistry room.

 

Betty wrinkled her nose in confusion wondering what part Weatherbee had in all of this. And then she realized what he was talking about…The Serpents. Jughead. The paper. Harassing Weatherbee. In finally realizing who _S_ was, she had nearly forgotten…

 

“I guess you have a really interesting definition of begging,” She sucked in a deep breath, recalling how he hastily promised to beg Hiram in hopes of cheering her up. Really, she was grateful for everything the Serpents had done, despite the legality of it all, and even more so for Jughead’s undeniable involvement. But that wasn’t what she wanted to talk about right now.

 

He leaned against one of the lab rooms, seeming uncomfortable. “I mean; it was only _fair_. I’m sorry for getting it shut down on you in the first place.”

 

_I’m sorry._

 

There were a lot of people who Betty would’ve loved to hear an apology from. But Jughead wasn’t one of them-not for that at least.

 

When she didn’t say anything, he turned to face her directly. And in that moment, she couldn’t help but laugh.

 

Because there it was. On his shirt, the whole time. Underneath the leather jacket, he was wearing one of his many shirts with a giant _S_ written across the center of it.

 

 _Could it have been more obvious?_ She snorted at herself. The answer was always right there, right in front of her.

 

But, at the time, it had seemed so unlikely.

 

“What?” he asked, looking at her curiously, “What’s so funny?”

 

“I mean, _hello_ ,” she gestured to his shirt. She was laughing, but it was only at herself, “It was in front of me, the whole time.”

 

“Are you okay?” He seemed concerned, “You’re not in trouble-are you-”

 

“You’re _S_ ,” she said abruptly, all laughter cut out of her voice.

 

Of all the things he could have expected her to say-that certainly wasn’t it. Not by the way he doubled backwards and his jaw nearly fell to the floor.

 

But he couldn’t help the way recognition flashed in his eyes or the guilty tone in his voice, “What? No!”

 

“Jug, don’t-”

 

“I don’t- _no_. I-what? What are you even talking about?” He was grappling, a red flush warming over his face.

 

It was all the confirmation Betty needed.

 

“Please,” she spoke and her voice suddenly felt incredibly small. “Jughead, you know what I’m talking about.”

 

“No,” he shook his head, eyeing the door like he was about to run for it at any given moment.

 

She grabbed his arm, as if to anchor him. To get him to stay standing where he was. “I spoke to your teacher today. You’re not failing English.”

 

“So?” he narrowed his eyes.

 

“So I know you didn’t join the Blue and Gold by force,” she commented gently, “You did it to feel more like yourself again.”

 

He looked away from her-at anything else in the room. At a dusty graduated cylinder that, without a doubt, could _not_ have been more captivating than their current situation.

 

She tightened her hold on his arm, resisting an urge to hug him. When they were friends, they didn’t hug much. But there were a few times where they had seen each other cry or at their very worst. Those times, Betty could recall, ended with the most comforting hugs she had ever experienced.

 

Moreover, she wanted to ask if it was true. If his mother had left and taken JB with her. His virtual description of his father did match all of the behaviors Betty had seen in him.

 

“The only thing I don’t understand is why,” Betty was gazing up at him, “Why jump through all these hoops? Creating a Tumblr account and messaging me anonymously when I was always a phone call or a text away? I mean, Jug, our _lockers_ are only ten feet apart from each other.”

 

It was the wrong question to ask. Betty could feel it shift something in the air. Like whatever connection they had been building, in person and online, had just snapped. He pulled away from her, a hurt look etched across his face. He had fallen back into his misunderstood persona.

 

“For the last time Betty, I don’t _know_ what you’re talking about,” He bit out, moving towards the door.

 

But she wasn’t willing to give up, “And- _why_ did you delete your account like that yesterday? I-I needed you and you weren’t there.”

 

He turned around quickly, angrily, “I did it because you asked me to leave you alone!”

 

As the words left his mouth, he seemed taken aback, blinking rapidly at his own confession. He looked unsure of as to why he admitted it.

 

“I didn’t mean it like that!” She argued back, but he shook his head in denial.

 

“You want to know why I did all of this?” He challenged, looking as though he had nothing left to lose. Betty felt familiar with that look, becoming acquainted with her own version of it yesterday.  “Because we aren’t _friends_. You made that abundantly clear before I left for the Southside. What was I supposed to do? Pour my heart out to someone who had proven they didn’t give a shit about me? I couldn’t go to you because I didn’t think you’d _care_. I thought at best you’d-you’d just pity me. If you even paid me any mind at all. Because ever since I got back from the Southside, you’ve just looked at me like everyone else…like I’m just some sort of lost cause.”

 

“And I know you care about _everyone_ so I figured if I could go anonymous then maybe…you’d think I’m someone worth caring about,” his eyes seemed sad and there was a shaking sort of vulnerability in them.

 

Betty felt her heart break, knowing he was resolute in his stance. He truly believed she didn’t care about him. She stood there, gaping at him, wishing she could find the right words.

 

“I just…” She began to say.

 

 Betty felt like they were circling back to the same problem, all of this happened because of _some_ external force making Jughead believe they weren’t friends. Something she couldn’t remember-and that was the heart of the problem. Why he pushed her away in the first place, why they lost touch, how their friendship fell apart. How he could shrink away and turn to a life with the Serpents-she understood some of that now. She understood that the number of positive influences in his life was less than one. He didn’t have strong family ties to bring him back into the light when darkness pulled him down too deep. His new “friends” were evidently not understanding enough either or he never would’ve reached out to Betty.

 

She felt guilty. Like her and Archie’s friendship with Jughead were his final anchors. It wasn’t entirely their fault he became the estranged, isolated gang-leader. But they certainly didn’t push him away from that lifestyle either.

 

Maybe it was a fizzle, except Betty couldn’t really recall it too strongly. It felt like they were best friends one day and next thing she knows, he’s a stranger in a leather jacket. Had she been blind to his suffering? Or had he gone to extreme lengths to conceal it?

 

“I wish I could remember,” she choked out and he paused, hand outstretched for the handle of the door, “I really do, Juggie.” She saw him tense at the nickname, and maybe it was a cruel time to use it, but she couldn’t help the way it slipped out.

 

“I wish I knew what it was that I did-to make you feel that way. To convince you so strongly that I don’t care about you-when that couldn’t be further from the truth,” he turned around to face her and was met with the sight of tears streaming down her face. “Because I thought it was the other way around, and it _hurt_. Thinking that all of our memories meant nothing to you-it hurt me every day. When you were at Southside, I’d look at where your locker used to be or the empty desk next to me and class and…it didn’t hurt that you were _gone_ as much as it had to know you didn’t care to say goodbye.”

 

“I know that pain-of thinking that your friends don’t care about you. That _no_ one cares about you,” she confessed. Veronica. Archie. Her parents. She also knew now she had inflicted that pain on others-like Kevin and Jughead. “And I wouldn’t wish it on anyone. Least of all you.”

 

“The fact that you don’t remember…when you’re Betty _freaking_ Cooper and you remember everything-you even remembered our bus driver’s _birthday_ every year of elementary school,” He shook his head, “It just… _shows_ that you don’t care.”

 

“ _Then tell me!_ ” she raised her voice, “Because I promise you-I’ve been wracking my brain and all I come up with are the good things. How _you_ planned me a going-away party before I left for my internship for the whole summer. How you went to extreme lengths just to make sure Cheryl didn’t find out about it because you knew how uncomfortable she made me after the whole-whole… _fat_ comment, thing. The care package you sent me halfway through the summer because you knew I was getting homesick. How you met me at Pop’s the night I came back just to hear me gush about meeting my idol.  When you came to the Pep rally for the first time in history just because it was the first time I was cheering…”

 

Her thoughts stopped her then. It was almost like she had an alarm ringing in her head. That, even though they were best friends, he went above and beyond what Archie did for her as her other best friend. Or Kevin. Or Veronica. If anything-the way he always went out of his way…put himself out of his comfort zone to even plan her a party…it was kind of like the way she always went out of her way for Archie. When she liked him- _like_ liked him.

 

It almost seemed like Jughead _like_ liked her, and that kind of changed everything if it was true, but she didn’t have time to think about it then. She gulped before continuing:

 

“…and then, it was like-nothing. _Poof_. All gone-you avoid me in the halls. You dodge my texts, my calls. You just _disappear_ overnight. And it hurt-Jug, it hurt me just as it hurt you to think _I_ didn’t care. Then you come back with a ‘devil may care attitude’ and friends who seem to hate me-what am I supposed to do? What am I supposed to think? When my life had also been going right to hell and suddenly the only person who genuinely cares is _S_! And _S_ always reminded me of _you_ because he only cared and noticed things about me the way you did.”

 

Betty paused again. She remembered making him soup when he got sick, baking him muffins when she knew things were bad with his parents. Making sure they were always partners in whatever class they had together-always asking if he was going to the school dances with anyone because the mere thought of it being anyone other than her made Betty wildly uncomfortable. Going out of her way to make sure he came to the football game because having him there would’ve been infinitely more special. The way her stomach would flip when their eyes met in the hall-if only it was for a fleeting second. Thinking he didn’t look half bad in a leather jacket

 

She knew now that he cared about her even when he came back. Asking about her family as _S_ , making sure she was okay when she came into school looking upset. Using his Serpent clout to allow Weatherbee to give her some form of the paper back. It was a horrifically timed moment to realize she may have _liked_ Jughead too. For a while now.

 

Truth be told, if any of her other friends had ghosted her like Jughead did, she didn’t think she would’ve cared as much.

 

“This would’ve been so much easier for you if it was Trev, right?” Jughead asked, eyes narrowed.

 

Betty grimaced, “What’s that supposed to mean?”

 

“C’mon-good guy Trev?” he snorted and shook his head. There was a hint of jealousy in his voice, “Do you know much it hurt to know you thought I was him? I mean-not that I blame you. Perfect guy, just has some low level mommy issues but other than that-he’s great! Hell, I wish it was him _for_ you.”

 

She wasn’t sure what he was getting at.

 

“It would’ve been so much _easier_ for you to fix. And then you could just-fall in love and live happily ever after, right?” He pressed.

 

“’Fall in love’? Jug, what are you talking about?” Betty was astounded-she may have thought Trev was cute, but not in _that_ way.

 

“I saw the way you looked at him when he gave you that note-the way he looked at you when he asked you out-” He clenched his jaw, “I just…forget it. Let’s just pretend this never happened, okay?”

 

And then he ran out of the room like it was on fire.

 

\--

 

Sitting in her AP Psych class, Betty couldn’t do much more than feel her stomach flip miserably.

 

On one hand, she felt incredibly grateful to have her paper back. Her _lifeblood_ back. Losing it felt like losing everything, but now that she had it back to some extent, she still felt a huge hole in the pit of her stomach.

 

“Now the _DSM-V_ made some changes in the criterion of alcoholism,” her teacher stated, “But it maintains a lot of the basic diagnostic questions from the DSM-IV. Let’s read some of them out loud-Ms. Lodge will you start us off?”

 

“Um-in the past year have you had times when you ended up drinking more, or longer than you intended?” Veronica read aloud and the sound of her voice alone sent another wave of nausea through Betty.

 

“For the record, the answer to all of these questions should be _no_ for you guys,” Dr. Smith said with a laugh.

 

Betty rolled her eyes, it was a failed attempt for him to relate to his students.

 

“But these questions are important for your upcoming tests on addiction disorders,” He warned, “So I’d be taking notes if I were you guys…”

 

“In the past year, have you spent a lot of time drinking? Or being sick over the after effects?” Veronica continued.

 

The topic of alcoholism reminded Betty of Jughead’s father, FP. She’d known of him for as long as she could remember, but she didn’t really _know_ him. Not like she knew Archie’s dad. Mr. Andrews was fairly active in Archie’s life-always driving him to practices, offering rides for the three of them to go to the movies…FP was never like that.

 

She didn’t really want to think of Jughead or his father. It made her feel upset all over again. It felt like there was no hope in saving whatever her relationship with Jughead was.

 

She had lost _S_ and Jughead. Even though she knew now that they were one in the same, it felt like double the loss. She didn’t even know what to say to him anymore.

 

“Wanted a drink so badly you couldn’t think of anything else?” Veronica’s voice faded back in. Betty noticed that Veronica looked immaculate as always-not the least bit upset. She looked like everything was just…business as usual. While Betty couldn’t help but believe she looked the total opposite.

 

Maybe Veronica had been right. Reacquainting herself with him, getting close to him again-it all only led up to losing him again. Maybe she should’ve stayed away.

 

“Found that drinking or being sick from drinking often interfered with taking care of your home or family?”

 

Involuntarily, her mind flashed to all of the times FP had forgotten to pick Jughead up from the bus stop. Or the countless times when her father drove all the way to Sunnyside to pick Jughead up for a playdate because his dad forgot to deliver him as promised. She could recall all of the times in middle school when the teachers, who were not as familiar with Jughead’s home life as the ones in elementary school were, kept giving him a hard time because his parents never came to parent-teacher conferences.

 

“Continued to drink even though it was causing trouble with your family or friends?”

 

Digging deeper, her mind supplied the day of Jughead’s 12th birthday party. Jughead didn’t even want one and was rather adamant about that fact to Betty and Archie. At the time, it had confused her because-what kid _didn’t_ want a party in their honor? She knew Jughead was never a fan of the spotlight, but he was completely dreading the day.

 

It wound up being rather cute. There were a few picnic tables with balloons and dollar-store decorations set up outside of their trailer. It was obvious that his mother was trying her best, and JB was snatching ribbons from presents and putting them in her ponytail. It was kind of adorable, and a good portion of their sixth grade class showed up.

 

The party was nearly over when FP showed up with his motorcycle roaring. It wasn’t until then that she noticed he was absent. She thought Jughead would be excited to have his dad show up-even if it was late. But she watched his face contort into something resembling horror and his shoulders made him shrink in on himself. He looked down at the table-refusing to make eye contact with his father.

 

FP rather classically, then stumbled off of his bike in a clear state of inebriation. He was slurring his words and Betty could recall it was the first time she had ever seen someone drunk. He was going off about how he mixed up his days and _wow, was it really Jug’s birthday?_ Before Gladys could usher him inside the trailer.

 

It must’ve been embarrassing-for all of his friends to see. But Betty and Archie attempted to diffuse the situation. And by that, Betty means Archie grabbed a fistful of cake and shoved it in Reggie’s face, thus resulting in a food war. While Betty herself showed Jughead the card she had spent several hours hand making.

 

Her mom was late in picking her up that night, a shocking turn of the tables. While waiting, she overheard Gladys and FP arguing inside of the trailer. Tumultuously, viciously-with words she hadn’t heard before and wouldn’t have permission to say for herself until she was eighteen. The argument ended with the sickening sound of skin slapping skin.

 

It was the only time she had seen Jughead cry.

 

She couldn’t imagine living with that. Living with a father like that. Her family had their issues, that was a step beyond what she had been experiencing.

 

It made her heart hurt for Jughead. He was so gentle and maybe rough around the edges-but it all centered around his feelings of worthlessness.

 

At least he had the Drive-In. Betty knew he would sometimes sneak in there with JB when things were getting rough at home.

 

Key word being _had_. That was when all of the change in Riverdale started-with the then-anonymous purchase of the Drive-In theatre.

 

It was right at the beginning of the school year. Betty remembered Jughead’s protests to save it, but it was all in vein. He invited her and Archie to the last showing-which she was pretty excited to attend. He was playing a movie she specifically requested- _Rebel With a Cause_.

 

With a frown, Betty remembered having to cancel last minute. It was the day her family found out Polly was pregnant. And it resulted in a 6 hour long family meeting that was primarily arguing and blame shifting between her parents and her sister. In a spare moment of her time, was she able to call Veronica and ask her to let Archie and Jughead know she wouldn’t be able to go.

 

 _It all started at the Drive In._ Veronica’s words from yesterday echoed in her mind.

Which now, with narrowed eyes and furrowed brows, she was beginning to suspect Veronica never relayed the message. Especially given the fact that the next day she asked Archie how it went and Archie aloofly said he didn’t go either.

 

And _holy shit_. That had to be it. That had to be the night Jughead was going to tell them about his mom leaving with JB. He was going to confide in them, but instead it looked like they ditched him and couldn’t care less.

 

_Oh god._

 

She had to find Jughead. She had to explain. Maybe he’d understand or maybe he wouldn’t. Either way, she had to at least try.

 

She grabbed her things and raced out of the classroom, ignoring the way her classmates stared at her in wonder and the threats of detention that trailed her footsteps.

 

\--

 

There was only one place where Betty suspected he would be. And she was most certainly breaking several rules in the process of getting there.

 

She wasn’t allowed to go anywhere besides school, as per the strict terms of her house arrest. But when she didn’t see Jughead at all after their… _whatever_ , she began to believe he left school entirely.

 

The rain was pouring down outside when she finally reached Sunnyside. Her umbrella wasn’t a useful match against the torrential downpour and the strong accompanying winds. In the back of her mind, she wondered when the last time they had actually _seen_ the sun. It felt like Riverdale was shrouded in a mixture of either overcast, misting, or rainy weather.

 

But nevertheless, she marched up to the trailer door and rapped her cold, wet knuckles against it.

 

_Knock. Knock. Knock._

 

She heard shuffling on the other end and let herself worry for a fleeting moment. What if she was wrong? What if this was all some misunderstanding-and Gladys or FP was on the other side of that door-looking at a soaking-wet teenager ruining her perfect attendance record for no apparent reason?

 

The trailer door squeaked its way open, giving way to the only remaining Jones on the premises. He looked even more worn out than earlier, a feat Betty didn’t even know was possible.

 

“Betty?” Jughead’s voice was soft and brimming with surprise. “What happened? You’re soaking wet-”

 

She didn’t wait for him to invite her in or even move out of the doorframe-she brushed right past him. She almost glided through the trailer-where her worry about his parents being home was shot straight to hell.

 

She couldn’t decide if it was cleaner than she remembered or just…emptier. Any traces of Gladys and JB looked like they were scrubbed from the trailer, save for one drawing JB made of her and Jughead that hung proudly on the refrigerator. The living room was fairly tidy, holding only a blanket and a pillow on the couch-where it looked like Jughead had been sitting. Down the hallway, she could see the master bedroom door opened just enough to see a messy pile of FP’s clothes. The room looked dusty and untouched-she was willing to guess the last person in there had been FP himself, prior to his arrest.

 

 There wasn’t a beer can or remnant of alcohol in sight. She supposed Jughead had cleaned up the place and decided to stay here in lieu of his foster family’s care.

 

It was rather sullen. She had only been inside the trailer a few times, years ago. It never quite looked clean or the kind of thing anyone would dream of living in but now…it just felt broken. Far from being a home.

 

She stopped surveilling the place to see Jughead staring at her. His lips were moving and that’s when Betty realized her had been talking to her. Asking her questions-like ‘What are you doing here? Did you cut class? Did something happen?’

 

“Your mom left,” she finally focused in on him. He looked at her as though she had slapped him. “And she took Jellybean with her. She would’ve taken you if she could but…” She didn’t need to say it out loud, they both knew perfectly well. “And not too long after your father was arrested and sent to prison. But he wasn’t really much of a _dad_ , was he Jughead? He cared more about the Serpents or whatever drink he could get his hands on more than you.”

 

“What?” he asked, a humorless laugh falling from his lips, “Are you trying to draft my Wikipedia page, or something?”

 

His eyes darkened and she knew she had to be careful with her word choice. She had to stick to what he had disclosed to her and be sure not to sound judgmental or make an assumption.

 

“And that must’ve been a _horrible, horrible_ weight to carry on your shoulders. Something no one should have to go through alone. So you decide to tell your friends. It’s been eating away at you for some time and you know there’s a very real possibility you’ll even have to switch schools. Which, on one hand is fine because you never really cared much for it, but on the other hand is terrifying because the _Southside_ is terrifying and you don’t want to leave your two best friends behind. But if you tell them, they might understand-right? They might have some sort of a solution or a way to make you feel better?” Betty carried on. He was looking at her, unsure of the direction she was taking this.

 

“ _But_ the problem is-you’re not so sure anymore. I mean, how could you be? It was like, overnight your whole world changed. Your mom was gone, so was your sister and your dad was in _jail_. And your friends have been making new friends and getting involved in new things that kind of…boxes you out a bit.” Her eyes were trained on him, evaluating. He sucked in a deep breath, confirming her suspicions. It must’ve been difficult to watch Betty join the Vixens and become attached at the hip to Veronica. While Archie headed up the football team and became more involved in his music.

 

There was an added layer of frustration if you counted the triangle Jughead was forced to witness: Betty pining over Archie, while Archie practically drools at Veronica’s feet. Veronica trying to balance her feelings for Archie while maintaining her newfound friendship with Betty. While Jughead sits on the sidelines, his own affections gone unnoticed and uncounted. Until now.

 

“Watching the girl you like, like someone else couldn’t have been easy,” she admitted softly, eyes falling to the ground. She lets the moment hang in the air for just one second-waiting for a denial or sign of confusion. When she received neither, she continued with her original vigor, “But either way-you decided to give it one final chance.  You ask them to come to closing of the Drive In-your favorite place. Your _safe_ place. When they promise to be there, you plan to tell them everything after the show. To finally let them in and hopefully, close the distance between all of you.”

 

He snorted-and she could nearly anticipate what he was going to say. _Too bad they didn’t show up_.

 

“But they never come. You never get a text or a call or a reason why. It’s just… _forgotten_ about. And you think they don’t care, no-now you _know_ they don’t care.” She can see the pain in his eyes and curses herself for being the one who put it there. “So you retreat and you build walls so you can lick your wounds and protect yourself. You avoid them until the transfer paperwork is complete and then you vanish-without a trace.”

 

He averted his gaze from her, stubbornly looking off to the side. “So you figured it out, huh? You remembered-”

 

“I’m not done,” she halts him mid-sentence. “So you go to Southside and you join the Serpents for… _something_. I don’t know, protection-maybe? I mean, what else do you have? Except…” she took a deep breath. The trailer was warm, but the rain water dripping down her face made her feel chilly. “You didn’t fit in. Son of the Serpents and it just…didn’t fit your skin. So when you came back to the Northside it was like coming back empty handed.”

 

“And that’s when you started messaging me...” She trailed off.

 

“Everything was gone,” he spoke, just above a whisper. “And it was like-like no matter what I did…it kept getting worse. When my mom and JB left I tried harder to take care of my dad. Get him to stop drinking, maybe get a job and get them to come back home…that earned me a few bruises.” He laughed at the thought, like he had been a fool for even trying.

 

 _Bruises_. FP hit him. Betty’s heart sank low in her chest, even lower upon the realization that it couldn’t have possibly been the first time-not after what she witnessed at his birthday party a few years prior. Without thinking twice, she surged forward until she was inches away from him. She brought a hand up to cup his face, scanning his body as if any bruises would’ve last more than a few weeks.

 

“And he still wound up in _jail_ -no matter what I did. And then I felt _us_ getting…you know-distant, and I tried to fix that but it backfired. Joining the Serpents made me feel…I don’t know-lonelier than ever I guess. I just…wanted things to be back to the way they were.” He explained, “I didn’t feel like myself and at one point I just…I gave up. I didn’t care about trying to fix things anymore-I didn’t care about trying to _fit_ in. I was just…trying to survive and then…it was like I didn’t even care if I could do _that_ much. Because…what was it all for? Just to come home to an empty house or go to school and watch my old friends act like I never existed-get calls from my social worker only for them to tell me that they still couldn’t get a hold of my mom? Or going to do meaningless Serpent shit, where they all expected so much out of me because of my dad?”

 

“I felt like I pigeonholed myself. And I had nothing and no one…” His eyes grew vacant, “I-for a while, I just…I hated myself for existing. Even more for not having the courage to change that either.”

 

Her eyes grew wide at his implication. He didn’t have to vocalize it in specific terms for her to pick up on what was in between the lines. The mere thought of _that_ …of _him-_ it brought fresh, hot tears to her eyes.

 

“And that’s why I messaged you. I needed it to be unpublished because I don’t-I don’t know. I mean, I guess I was worried someone might figure it out? Toni is surprisingly astute to these kinds of things…but it felt like it was a last ditch effort. Like…even if I didn’t follow your advice I could at least…talk to you again? I know that sounds creepy because you didn’t want anything to do with me in the first place-” Jughead finally looked back at her but she could see a disheartening kind of distance in his eyes.

 

Her gut instinct about the messages was correct. It had been a much deeper cry for help.

 

“That’s not true,” she cut in quickly, “That night at the Drive In…I didn’t ditch you.”

 

He swallowed thickly, “Betty-it’s fine. You don’t have to-”

 

“I don’t _ditch_ people Jughead, you know that,” Betty pleaded, hoping he could understand. That he could see it was out of her character enough for him to trust what she was saying.

 

His mouth was pressed into a thin line, “Then what exactly do you call making plans with someone and not showing up without any warning? No call or-or even a text.”

 

“I didn’t have a chance,” she explained, “I…when I got home that day…Polly was sobbing and she was clinging on to me for _dear_ life. Begging me not to let them send her away.”

 

She remembered it vividly. The way she had barely set foot in the door before finding herself holding her older sister. The desperation in Polly’s eyes, the horror in her tone. She recalled her own fury at what her parents were trying to do.

 

“Send her away?” He asked.

 

“To The Sisters of Quiet Mercy,” she supplied. It came to her in flashes, despite how desperately her mind was attempting to suppress the memory.  Her father’s cold stare, her mother’s anger. It was a bomb that took the whole night to diffuse.

 

Jughead looked at her, stunned, “They were trying to send her _there?_ For being _pregnant?_ I can’t believe-”

 

“Doesn’t matter,” she shook her head, “it doesn’t matter now. The point is-that whole… _thing_ happened. And I was trying to deal with it. And then Veronica just happened to call me during the five minute screaming break so I asked her to let you know I couldn’t go…”

 

At the mention of Veronica, she could practically see the puzzle pieces snap into place for him. Everything was beginning to make sense.

 

“Veronica,” he muttered under his breath, “That explains a lot.”

 

“She told me you guys had a bit of a falling out at the Drive In,” Betty recalled.

 

“That’s one way to put it.” He snorted, “I don’t know why I didn’t realize it sooner…”

 

“In your defense,” Betty clarified, “I never apologized. I never went up to you and explained to you why I couldn’t go. Truth be told-I was so… _selfish_ and caught up in my own life that I didn’t even realize…”

 

He looked at her incredulously, “Betty-come on, _selfish?_ You’re the furthest thing.”

 

“I still hurt you,” she dropped her hand from his face. “I’m _so_ sorry.”

 

He looked at her very seriously, “This isn’t your fault. My life isn’t your fault-”

 

“I know that, but I made it worse,” She cried, blame washing over her. At the sight of her tears, he wrapped her tightly in his arms. She couldn’t shake the feeling of guilt. Of missing out on so much of his life all because she was too busy to send him a text on that fateful night. Maybe she could’ve prevented him from joining the Serpents or going to the Southside at all. She would’ve been there for him, with everything from his mom leaving to his dad being sent to prison.

 

He rubbed her back soothingly, “That’s not true.” His words were gentle and genuine, “Betty-as easy as it would be for me to play the victim here, I hurt you too.”

 

“It’s not the same-” She began to pull back when he interrupted her.

 

“But isn’t it though? You went through a lot with your sister and your mom…I could’ve reached out too. I left without saying goodbye. And I wasn’t exactly friendly when I came back. We weren’t there for each other.  We both hurt each other.” He cleared his throat, “And I’m sorry. For everything on my end.”

 

“I’m sorry too,” she looked back up at him. She felt some of the tension leave her shoulders as she shifted backwards.

 

“So no hard feelings then?” He responded with a cheeky grin, “Boy I wish we did this months ago. Just think about all of the missed milkshakes.”

 

Lightly, she reached over and grabbed his hand. Their fingers laced together with a quiet kind of ease, one that provided warmth and comfort. “Maybe we can share one,” she teased.

 

A blush began to color his cheeks as she looked around at the room, eyes falling on a folder on the kitchen counter. Sloppily written across the front were the letters “B&G”.

 

“What’s this?” She inquired, leaning over the nook to grab it.

 

“Oh, um-that?” He looked guilty, “That’s nothing-”

 

Before he could protest, her fingers pushed the folder open. The pages inside of it were unbounded, and some fell to the floor with little grace. Her brows wrinkled in confusion as her eyes scanned the bolded print.

 

Some of folder’s contents were screenshots, snippets of advice she had given on _Ask Elizabeth_. Others were lengthier pieces, or even entire newspapers as a whole. Everything from the one time Tina had anonymously asked about what to do if she felt her boyfriend was cheating on her with her best friend to Betty’s in depth article on the accuracy of AP exams was in the folder. Certain portions were highlighted and notes were scribbled in the margin.

 

“Jug-” Her breath got caught in her throat. “These are…”

 

“Everything,” He finished. “Everything you’ve ever written for the _Blue and Gold_.”

 

“But…why?” Betty was puzzled, looking up at him in confusion.

 

“Weatherbee needed some reminding of all the good you do, I guess,” Jughead shrugged. But she knew he hadn’t just printed them out for Weatherbee. She remembered his comment a few weeks back, a specific recount of all of the articles she had written in defense of the Serpents.

 

“I mean…every article is here,” she felt astounded, she never thought anyone actually cared enough to read them. Much less so _thoroughly._ “Even the boring ones.” He snorted out a laugh at that.

 

“You’re _incredible_ , Betts,” Jughead looked at her in a way she could only describe as piercing. There was something in his eyes that made Betty’s chest flutter nervously, something that sparked waves of excitement within her. “I mean you’re a great writer but everything about you is… _amazing_.”

 

She felt a blush rise to the apples of her cheeks and a wide smile break out across her lips.  She looked at him coyly, nervously shuffling on her feet but never breaking eye contact with him. Gently, she placed his folder on the table.

 

He blushed in return, worried he rambled too far, “I mean-it just, it wasn’t fair for Weatherbee to-”

 

She cut him off by pressing her lips to his chastely. It was a quick kiss, impulsive and done before she could lose her nerve. Her right hand was resting on the back of his neck, with the other barely grazing his face. It felt _right_ , like everything had been falling together and just clicked into place. Like the last piece of a puzzle had found its home.

 

But it was over much too quickly, as Betty pulled away and looked up at Jughead with a smile. He looked as though someone splashed him with ice cold water, stunned and unsure if what had just happened _really_ actually just happened…

 

Betty found it kind of adorable. She would’ve been worried about potential fear of rejection but she knew him too well for that. “That was really sweet of you, Jug,” her eyes were bright and nearly beaming.

 

Her words snapped him out of whatever kiss-induced trance he found himself locked in. His eyes met hers before he angled his head downwards to connect their lips once again. Betty smiled into the kiss, reveling in the feeling of his warm, soft lips against hers and tangling her hands behind his neck to deepen it further. His hands found their way to the small of her back when-

 

 ** _KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK._** They broke apart at the sound of someone knocking on the door of the trailer. Breathlessly, both of their heads snapped towards the direction of the noise.

 

“Were you expecting anyone?” Betty wondered, glancing at him nervously. She couldn’t help but feel her gut twist anxiously, instincts telling her whatever was on the other side of that door was bound to be trouble.

 

“No,” he shook his head with a slight rasp in his voice, “I-don’t, I’m not even supposed to be here. Technically I’m supposed to be with my foster family-no one knows I come here.”

 

 ** _KNOCK. KNOCK. KNOCK._** The noise came louder this time. His eyes flickered to hers and she noticed the worry residing in them.

 

Betty took a deep breath before straightening her shoulders, slipping her hand into his effortlessly. She gave his hand a subtle squeeze and smiled at him reassuringly. It felt as though a wave of calmness washed through her and she felt more secure.

 

Whatever was on the other side of that door, whatever the world was going to throw at them next-they would get through it.

 

Together.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> first of all-i want to say thank you to everyone for sticking with me through this story. i never expected this story to get so much attention and i really appreciated every kudos and comment left on every chapter (i may or may not go back and read them all when i'm having a bad day...[aka, i 100% totally do that]) i'm so sorry that the last update took me so long but i hope everyone enjoyed it!  
> secondly- i really want to write this story from Jughead's pov because i feel like there's still a bit more to tell from his side. with my semester starting in a day i'm not sure when i'll get around to writing it but the motivation is defffffinitley there!  
> finally- if you want to join me on tumblr.com you can find me @ aswellingstorm-for now! i'm planning on moving blogs and making a riverdale centric sideblog because i know a lot of people follow me for riverdale content and lately i haven't been delivering on that front which makes me feel incredibly guilty! but! anyway! just know that i am working on organizing my life! at some point! soon! hopefully!
> 
> once again, i want to thank you all for taking the time to read this story <3

**Author's Note:**

> me? writing another story? without finishing the others? yes, welcome to 2018 where I haven't changed at all (but on a serious note, I do promise I'm working on ATT)
> 
> this fic will be a lot shorter than the others, but it was something new I wanted to try! as always you can find me on tumblr at @aswellingstorm.tumblr.com


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